Sydney (AFP)

Considerable resources are being deployed to rescue survivors of the Burn Island New Zealand Volcano, and the United States has sent skin for transplants, while victims are being repatriated to Australia. to be treated.

Here are four questions about how these patients will be treated.

Why is skin needed?

The skin - the largest organ of the human body - holds our muscles, our bones and our internal organs. It also helps regulate body temperature and synthesize vitamins.

Damaged skin tissue can cause blood loss, concussion and risk of infection.

Three days after the eruption of the White Island volcano, 29 survivors, severely burned, are still hospitalized.

Some victims have burns on more than two-thirds of their bodies and their internal organs have also been burned.

Pete Watson, spokesman for the New Zealand Department of Health, said the nature of the burns was compounded by the gases and chemicals that emerged during the eruption.

"It required rapid surgical treatment of these burns, which is usually not the case when it comes to thermal burns only," he explained.

Skin grafts - taking healthy skin from the body of the victim or a donor - are one of the most important treatments for people with burns.

The applied skin acts as a dressing and helps heal wounds and stop infections.

Where does the skin come from?

The skin comes from deceased donors. Some lived on the other side of the world.

New Zealand has appealed to Australia and the United States for sending a small portion of their stocks.

The New Zealand authorities have indicated that they need more skin, while seven surviving Australians have been repatriated by military aircraft. Six others are expected to return in the next 24 hours.

Australia has three cutaneous tissue banks from donors that are sent to the Burn Unit.

According to Stefan Poniatowski, who runs one of these tissue banks, there is "always" a shortage of donor skin.

Major disasters like White Island only aggravate this problem.

"Most of the skin is used for (the victims) of house, car, etc ... so when important events occur, the system is put to the test," he said. he explains.

How do skin grafts work?

Using skin from deceased donors is a last resort. The ideal is to take the healthy part of a patient's skin and graft it onto the burned area, according to Poniatowski.

But this ideal solution is not possible on patients suffering burns on more than 50% of their body because they do not have enough skin for it to be grafted to them, he explained to the chain Australian ABC.

Having the skin of donors is also the only option when patients have a serious infection.

Surgeons first remove the damaged skin to find healthy tissue, then implant and graft the skin of the donor, he explained.

The new dermis will then integrate with the dermis of the patient and allow his own skin to grow on the wound and heal.

Can it work?

When so many people are seriously injured, the authorities prefer to prepare the population for an increase in the number of victims.

However, skin grafts can save people who are burned, which is why health authorities are making every effort to secure stocks from donors.

However, these initial interventions are just the beginning of a long journey for patients. Some will take several months to recover.

© 2019 AFP