Concrete burn images: Corrosive burns from wet cement
Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, and Prevention
Concrete Burns: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, and Prevention
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Medically reviewed by Erica Ramirez, PA-C — By Daniel Yetman on September 17, 2021
Cement burns, sometimes also called concrete burns, are chemical burns caused by cement.
The words ”concrete” and ”cement” are often used interchangeably, but there’s a subtle difference. Cement is an ingredient that makes up about 10 to 15 percent of concrete. It hardens over time as it reacts with air molecules.
Concrete is a mixture of cement with sand, gravel, and pieces of rock.
When wet cement contacts your skin, chemicals react to water molecules in your skin. This reaction produces alkaline molecules that can break down your skin tissue. The longer cement stays in contact with your skin, the worse the burn becomes.
Learn when you’re most at risk of developing a concrete burn, and how you can treat it.
When you add water to cement powder, a molecule called calcium oxide turns into calcium hydroxide. When this happens, it raises the pH of cement.
The pH scale is a measure of how acidic or basic a substance is on a scale of 1 to 14. A pH of 1 means it’s a strong acid, a pH of 7 means it’s neutral, and a pH of 14 means it’s a strong base.
The natural pH of skin, on average, is 4.7. Substances on the high or low end of the scale can cause chemical burns that damage your skin.
Chemicals in wet cement react with sweat and water molecules in your skin and produce ions made of an oxygen and hydrogen molecule. These molecules dissolve proteins and collagen fibers. They also break down fats and dehydrate cells.
The longer wet cement touches your skin, the longer it reacts with water molecules and the worse your burn becomes. In an older 2007 study, researchers reviewed cases of cement burn injuries at St James’s Hospital in Dublin, Ireland between the years 1996 to 2005. They found that the average time of exposure for people admitted to the burn unit was 60 minutes.
Is it safe to leave handprints in wet cement?
Brief exposure to cement is unlikely to cause concrete burns if you wash your hands immediately with water and pH-neutral or slightly acidic soap. But to be on the safe side, avoid touching wet concrete unnecessarily.
If you do touch cement, wash it off your hands before you develop noticeable symptoms. According to Poison Control, burns usually continue to get worse even after washing off the cement.
Was this helpful?
Cement burns often occur when cement gets trapped in areas like your gloves or boots, where it can easily go unnoticed and lead to delayed treatment. Watches, rings, and jewelry can also easily trap it.
A 2015 case study describes a 28-year-old man who developed severe burns after kneeling on cement for 3 hours while resurfacing his basement floor. According to the authors of the study, most concrete burns occur in lower limbs, particularly around the knee, ankle, and foot. Most cases of concrete burns in developed countries occur in construction workers or people working with cement at home.
Other case studies
Poison Control highlights two case studies of people who required emergency medical attention after exposure to cement.
In the first case, a 2-year-old-girl poured a bag of dry cement on herself.
She had symptoms of coughing, choking, and vomiting, which resolved about 3 hours after arriving at the emergency room.
In the second case, a 57-year man developed deep burns on both knees and skin after kneeling in concrete as he poured it out.
A 2013 case study describes another 28-year-old man who jumped into a cement truck and was there for 3 to 4 hours until he was found. He died 13 days after admittance to the hospital due to multiple organ failure related to his burn injuries, ingestion of concrete, and complications.
Chemical burns often don’t appear until after your initial exposure. It isn’t always obvious that concrete caused your burn, since the contact may have occurred hours earlier. Burns tend to be slow to appear, and get worse over time.
Depending on the severity of your burn, your symptoms may include:
- redness
- itchiness
- pain
- blistering
- scabbing
- dry skin
Here’s how you and your doctor can treat concrete burns.
First aid
As soon as you notice cement on your skin, remove any jewelry, protective gear, and concrete-soaked clothes. Brush any dry concrete of your skin and flush the burn with lukewarm water for about 20 minutes.
Seek medical attention after rinsing.
Concrete burn neutralizer at home
The Occupational Safety & Health Administration recommends applying diluted vinegar or another acidic substance like citrus juice to help neutralize the burn and prevent further damage.
Avoid applying creams or lotions unless advised by a doctor.
Medical treatment
Tell a healthcare professional that you’re dealing with a concrete burn when you arrive at the hospital or clinic. They will rinse your burn again and dress your wound with bandages, and may give you antibiotics to reduce chances of infection.
If the burn is deep, covers a large surface area, or completely encircles an extremity, hospitalization is often necessary.
Medical professionals can perform a procedure called debridement where they remove dead skin tissue and follow that with a skin graft.
Medical emergency
Seek medical attention if your burn is larger than 3 inches across. A burn that causes a lot of pain or covers your face, genitals, hands, or feet should also prompt emergency medical attention.
You can prevent concrete burns by:
- wearing proper safety equipment like safety goggles, gloves, long pants and sleeves, and knee pads when working with concrete
- wearing waterproof boots high enough that concrete won’t leak over the top. You can tuck your pants in your boots or duct tape them together to create a seal.
- wearing well-fitting gloves
- removing concrete splattered on your skin as soon as you notice it
- trying not to get concrete on your skin when removing work clothes
- avoiding unnecessary exposure to wet concrete
- avoiding wearing jewelry and watches when working with cement
Concrete burns are caused by chemicals in wet cement. If you get wet concrete on your skin, rinse it off with water and a pH neutral or slightly acidic soap as soon as you notice it.
Burns tend to onset slowly and the longer you wait to treat them, the more severe they become. Symptoms tend to get worse even after rinsing off concrete.
Last medically reviewed on September 17, 2021
How we reviewed this article:
Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.
- Alam M, et al. (2007). Cement burns.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2064966/ - Cement & concrete basics FAQs. (n.d.).
cement.org/cement-concrete/cement-and-concrete-basics-faqs - Don’t get burned by cement. (n.d.).
poison.org/articles/cement - KU-EHS jobsite safety: Cement burn awareness and treatment. (2018).
ehs.ku.edu/ku-ehs-jobsite-safety-cement-burn-awareness-and-treatment - Ng NY, et al.
(2015). Cement burn.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4347359/ - Preventing skin problems from working with cement. (n.d.).
osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/OSHA-3351-portland-cement.pdf
(2015). Cement burn.Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available.
Current Version
Sep 17, 2021
Written By
Daniel Yetman
Edited By
Roman Gokhman
Medically Reviewed By
Erica Ramirez, PA-C
Copy Edited By
Megan McMorris
Share this article
Medically reviewed by Erica Ramirez, PA-C — By Daniel Yetman on September 17, 2021
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Learn how to prevent these burns and how to treat them at home.
Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, and Prevention
Concrete Burns: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, and Prevention
- Health Conditions
- Featured
- Breast Cancer
- IBD
- Migraine
- Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Type 2 Diabetes
- Articles
- Acid Reflux
- ADHD
- Allergies
- Alzheimer’s & Dementia
- Bipolar Disorder
- Cancer
- Crohn’s Disease
- Chronic Pain
- Cold & Flu
- COPD
- Depression
- Fibromyalgia
- Heart Disease
- High Cholesterol
- HIV
- Hypertension
- IPF
- Osteoarthritis
- Psoriasis
- Skin Disorders and Care
- STDs
- Featured
- Discover
- Wellness Topics
- Nutrition
- Fitness
- Skin Care
- Sexual Health
- Women’s Health
- Mental Well-Being
- Sleep
- Product Reviews
- Vitamins & Supplements
- Sleep
- Mental Health
- Nutrition
- At-Home Testing
- CBD
- Men’s Health
- Original Series
- Fresh Food Fast
- Diagnosis Diaries
- You’re Not Alone
- Present Tense
- Video Series
- Youth in Focus
- Healthy Harvest
- No More Silence
- Future of Health
- Wellness Topics
- Plan
- Health Challenges
- Mindful Eating
- Sugar Savvy
- Move Your Body
- Gut Health
- Mood Foods
- Align Your Spine
- Find Care
- Primary Care
- Mental Health
- OB-GYN
- Dermatologists
- Neurologists
- Cardiologists
- Orthopedists
- Lifestyle Quizzes
- Weight Management
- Am I Depressed? A Quiz for Teens
- Are You a Workaholic?
- How Well Do You Sleep?
- Tools & Resources
- Health News
- Find a Diet
- Find Healthy Snacks
- Drugs A-Z
- Health A-Z
- Health Challenges
- Connect
- Breast Cancer
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease
- Psoriatic Arthritis
- Migraine
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Psoriasis
Medically reviewed by Erica Ramirez, PA-C — By Daniel Yetman on September 17, 2021
Cement burns, sometimes also called concrete burns, are chemical burns caused by cement.
The words ”concrete” and ”cement” are often used interchangeably, but there’s a subtle difference. Cement is an ingredient that makes up about 10 to 15 percent of concrete. It hardens over time as it reacts with air molecules.
Concrete is a mixture of cement with sand, gravel, and pieces of rock.
When wet cement contacts your skin, chemicals react to water molecules in your skin. This reaction produces alkaline molecules that can break down your skin tissue. The longer cement stays in contact with your skin, the worse the burn becomes.
Learn when you’re most at risk of developing a concrete burn, and how you can treat it.
When you add water to cement powder, a molecule called calcium oxide turns into calcium hydroxide. When this happens, it raises the pH of cement.
The pH scale is a measure of how acidic or basic a substance is on a scale of 1 to 14. A pH of 1 means it’s a strong acid, a pH of 7 means it’s neutral, and a pH of 14 means it’s a strong base.
The natural pH of skin, on average, is 4.7. Substances on the high or low end of the scale can cause chemical burns that damage your skin.
Chemicals in wet cement react with sweat and water molecules in your skin and produce ions made of an oxygen and hydrogen molecule. These molecules dissolve proteins and collagen fibers. They also break down fats and dehydrate cells.
The longer wet cement touches your skin, the longer it reacts with water molecules and the worse your burn becomes. In an older 2007 study, researchers reviewed cases of cement burn injuries at St James’s Hospital in Dublin, Ireland between the years 1996 to 2005. They found that the average time of exposure for people admitted to the burn unit was 60 minutes.
Is it safe to leave handprints in wet cement?
Brief exposure to cement is unlikely to cause concrete burns if you wash your hands immediately with water and pH-neutral or slightly acidic soap. But to be on the safe side, avoid touching wet concrete unnecessarily.
If you do touch cement, wash it off your hands before you develop noticeable symptoms. According to Poison Control, burns usually continue to get worse even after washing off the cement.
Was this helpful?
Cement burns often occur when cement gets trapped in areas like your gloves or boots, where it can easily go unnoticed and lead to delayed treatment. Watches, rings, and jewelry can also easily trap it.
A 2015 case study describes a 28-year-old man who developed severe burns after kneeling on cement for 3 hours while resurfacing his basement floor. According to the authors of the study, most concrete burns occur in lower limbs, particularly around the knee, ankle, and foot. Most cases of concrete burns in developed countries occur in construction workers or people working with cement at home.
Other case studies
Poison Control highlights two case studies of people who required emergency medical attention after exposure to cement.
In the first case, a 2-year-old-girl poured a bag of dry cement on herself.
She had symptoms of coughing, choking, and vomiting, which resolved about 3 hours after arriving at the emergency room.
In the second case, a 57-year man developed deep burns on both knees and skin after kneeling in concrete as he poured it out.
A 2013 case study describes another 28-year-old man who jumped into a cement truck and was there for 3 to 4 hours until he was found. He died 13 days after admittance to the hospital due to multiple organ failure related to his burn injuries, ingestion of concrete, and complications.
Chemical burns often don’t appear until after your initial exposure. It isn’t always obvious that concrete caused your burn, since the contact may have occurred hours earlier. Burns tend to be slow to appear, and get worse over time.
Depending on the severity of your burn, your symptoms may include:
- redness
- itchiness
- pain
- blistering
- scabbing
- dry skin
Here’s how you and your doctor can treat concrete burns.
First aid
As soon as you notice cement on your skin, remove any jewelry, protective gear, and concrete-soaked clothes. Brush any dry concrete of your skin and flush the burn with lukewarm water for about 20 minutes.
Seek medical attention after rinsing.
Concrete burn neutralizer at home
The Occupational Safety & Health Administration recommends applying diluted vinegar or another acidic substance like citrus juice to help neutralize the burn and prevent further damage.
Avoid applying creams or lotions unless advised by a doctor.
Medical treatment
Tell a healthcare professional that you’re dealing with a concrete burn when you arrive at the hospital or clinic. They will rinse your burn again and dress your wound with bandages, and may give you antibiotics to reduce chances of infection.
If the burn is deep, covers a large surface area, or completely encircles an extremity, hospitalization is often necessary.
Medical professionals can perform a procedure called debridement where they remove dead skin tissue and follow that with a skin graft.
Medical emergency
Seek medical attention if your burn is larger than 3 inches across. A burn that causes a lot of pain or covers your face, genitals, hands, or feet should also prompt emergency medical attention.
You can prevent concrete burns by:
- wearing proper safety equipment like safety goggles, gloves, long pants and sleeves, and knee pads when working with concrete
- wearing waterproof boots high enough that concrete won’t leak over the top. You can tuck your pants in your boots or duct tape them together to create a seal.
- wearing well-fitting gloves
- removing concrete splattered on your skin as soon as you notice it
- trying not to get concrete on your skin when removing work clothes
- avoiding unnecessary exposure to wet concrete
- avoiding wearing jewelry and watches when working with cement
Concrete burns are caused by chemicals in wet cement. If you get wet concrete on your skin, rinse it off with water and a pH neutral or slightly acidic soap as soon as you notice it.
Burns tend to onset slowly and the longer you wait to treat them, the more severe they become. Symptoms tend to get worse even after rinsing off concrete.
Last medically reviewed on September 17, 2021
How we reviewed this article:
Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.
- Alam M, et al. (2007). Cement burns.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2064966/ - Cement & concrete basics FAQs. (n.d.).
cement.org/cement-concrete/cement-and-concrete-basics-faqs - Don’t get burned by cement. (n.d.).
poison.org/articles/cement - KU-EHS jobsite safety: Cement burn awareness and treatment. (2018).
ehs.ku.edu/ku-ehs-jobsite-safety-cement-burn-awareness-and-treatment - Ng NY, et al. (2015). Cement burn.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4347359/ - Preventing skin problems from working with cement. (n.d.).
osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/OSHA-3351-portland-cement.pdf
(2015). Cement burn.Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available.
Current Version
Sep 17, 2021
Written By
Daniel Yetman
Edited By
Roman Gokhman
Medically Reviewed By
Erica Ramirez, PA-C
Copy Edited By
Megan McMorris
Share this article
Medically reviewed by Erica Ramirez, PA-C — By Daniel Yetman on September 17, 2021
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Second- and third-degree burns can cause scars. Treatment options depend on the severity of your burn. Learn more.
READ MORE
- Chemical Burns
Medically reviewed by Cynthia Cobb, DNP, APRN, WHNP-BC, FAANP
Find information about chemical burns and how to prevent them.
Learn about the causes, symptoms, and treatment of chemical burns.READ MORE
- Home Remedies for Burns
You can treat most first-degree and second-degree burns at home by running cool water over the area for 20 minutes. You can also relieve pain with…
READ MORE
- Performing First Aid for Burns
Medically reviewed by Gerhard Whitworth, R.N.
There are specific first aid steps to follow for burns. Learn the difference between minor burns and major burns and how to properly treat them.
READ MORE
- Burns from Boiling Water
Medically reviewed by Cynthia Cobb, DNP, APRN, WHNP-BC, FAANP
Boiling water burns or scalds are injuries caused by moist heat and vapors. Learn how to prevent these burns and how to treat them at home.
READ MORE
- Tongue Burn
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Burning your tongue can be painful and frustrating. Drinking hot liquids and eating hot foods can put you at risk of burning your tongue.
Learn more…READ MORE
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com? “The approach should be to minimize the use of concrete and steel,” says Lasse Lind.
Bulk timber could be a key tool in reducing waste in the construction industry, says GXN partner Lasse Lind in this interview for our Timber Revolution series.
GXN was founded in 2007 as a research arm of the Copenhagen-based architecture studio 3XN.
GXN looks at circular and low carbon design, behavioral design including the social aspect of buildings, and technologies that can help the industry move towards a more sustainable future.
The use of blown wood
According to Lind, the use of wood has increased dramatically in recent years: about half of his buildings now have a significant element of wood in their construction, compared to almost none five years ago.
“We’ve always been very interested in materials and materials technology,” said Lind Dezeen.
“Our focus on materials has changed over the years and we are now extremely focused on recyclability, recycled content, low carbon, natural biogenic materials – that’s our absolute goal.”
Above: Lasse Lind is a GXN partner. Above: A CLT-framed hotel on the island of Bornholm is one of the studio’s projects. Photo by Adam Mörk
Much of the studio’s work to date has been in solid wood, which Lind says has many advantages over other building materials.
“The first one obviously has less carbon, which is a big advantage, and the fact that it’s a regenerative material,” he said.
“There are other aspects to buildability,” he added. “Wooden structures are generally lighter than, for example, concrete structures. So you need less transport and, in principle, fewer cranes.”
Wood helps you “close the waste cycle”
The fact that everything is prefabricated in solid wood construction also means you can work to tighter tolerances and reduce waste, Lind says.
In a recent project, a carbon-negative hotel extension on the island of Bornholm, Denmark, the studio even used offcuts from the building’s cross-laminated wood (CLT) to create furniture and furnishings.
“Maybe you don’t have a lot of waste in production,” he said. “Especially if you think about it the same way we did it in the prototype at Bornholm where we used all the furniture scraps – you can really close the waste cycle in the production chain a bit.”
Construction waste currently accounts for over a third of all waste generated in the EU.
The use of wood in the studio exploded. Photo by Paul Kasselman
As part of its research in this area, GXN is also experimenting with the use of CLT slab cutoffs as floors in its buildings.
“You have to come to terms with the fact that they are different thicknesses and you have to look at the mesh, because if it’s cutoffs, you can’t get everything in eight meters,” he said.
“You have to have some substructure to accommodate different sizes, so you need to spend a little more energy on the substructure, but then you can use those trimmings like real slabs.
”
At the moment, adding concrete to slabs is one of the things that makes it difficult to design fully reversible timber buildings.
“In large timber structures where you have slabs, it’s standard practice to knock everything out because of sound and vibration,” Lind explained.
“Basically, if you have a wood slab, you’re pouring concrete screed over the top, and it actually ruins the reversibility of most of the structure,” he added.
GXN tried to create buildings that use alternatives to concrete slabs, including a version in which the studio used sand-filled egg cases instead of slabs.
“What we tried to do in the Bornholm project was to have these boxes and fill them with granite dust, granite production waste, but the engineers didn’t sign it, unfortunately, so we couldn’t do it. for this project,” Lind said.
“But now we are building a building where we get rid of this concrete screed,” he continued.
“This is something we always know when we build with wood – if we could get away with this detail, we would like to, because it’s a small detail, but it ruins the reversibility of the whole structure.
”
Carbon budget ‘structures the debate’
Lind believes we will see many hybrid wood systems in the future as the industry figures out when wood is best used.
“We [need to] figure out what wood is really good for, what concrete is really good for, and what steel is really good for,” he said.
“The approach should be to minimize the use of concrete and steel, but there are only parts of the building where [those materials] make more sense,” he added.
“I’m very interested in us using materials where they are best, and I think there are many places where we could easily replace concrete or steel with wood.”
The Lemvig Climate Center has an undulating wooden façade. Photo by Adam Mörk
To minimize carbon emissions, GXN sets carbon budgets for each of its projects, which vary depending on the type of project and the country in which it is built.
“The only thing we’re always trying to do is put in a carbon budget because it brings carbon up for discussion with every material choice and in that sense it structures the discussion like a financial budget does,” Lind said.
As wooden buildings become more popular, Lind believes that this material not only affects carbon emissions, but also influences how buildings look, behave and feel.
“I think we as designers will start learning the vocabulary of what we can do, which I think will be very interesting,” he said.
“I don’t think it’s going to be the same architecture as it was 50 years ago when we sort of opened up the computer, but when you think about it, there are a lot of really creative half-timbered buildings in Europe that have all kinds of views. strange ornaments, shapes and forms,” he added.
But although the use of wood and solid wood is becoming more popular, architects still face challenges when designing wooden buildings. One of them is the transfer of building security to insurance companies.
“What we see as a problem with wood buildings right now is generally insurance because it’s a different material than what people usually use,” Lind said.
“We often find that insurers have to get involved and understand that things are different.
Since you can secure wooden buildings, you can build them in a way that is safe to operate and safe as an asset, but there is one downside. degree of skepticism on the part of insurers”.
Designers must love the “natural patina” of wood.
Regulatory difficulties sometimes arise as fire regulations are often based on steel or concrete buildings.
“Wooden structures inherently burn differently than steel or concrete,” Lind said.
“And you can safely build with wood, but the way it’s measured and regulated has to be different because it’s not steel,” he continued.
“Steel gets very hot and then breaks, wood burns very slowly. It’s just a different strategy to use with fire.”
GXN uses a carbon budget for its projects. Photo by Rasmus Hjorthoy
Architects and clients also need to get used to the fact that wood is a living material, which means it will change in ways that concrete and steel buildings couldn’t, he argued.
“There’s a certain degree of natural patina that you have to love as a designer,” Lind said.