CSB #4: The Burn Journals

The Burn Journals by Brent Runyon

Definitions:
skin grafting: the transplantation of skin; a skin graft is the skin that is replaced or reattached to the patient
narcotics: according to the medical definition, narcotics are a branch of drugs that induce sleepiness, which helps to ease pain

Summary: The Burn Journals is a memoir about Brent Runyon, a teenager growing up in the 1990's. One afternoon, he is sent to the hospital because he tries to commit suicide by burning his entire body, and he enters extensive treatment for the 3rd degree burns that cover 85% of his body. Because of the burns covering his body, Runyon has to have most of his skin replaced through skin grafting; parts of his skin are sent to a lab where they are regrown, and his skin is replaced. Brent also has to stay in the hospital for almost a year to recover because his burns are so bad. Because Brent is in intense pain because of the burns, he is given narcotics to ease the pain. In addition, Brent has to go through therapy because he had depression that was so intense that he tried to kill himself.

Discussion: The main scientific elements in this book are skin grafting and therapy. Skin grafting is a very important tool for scientists and patients recovering from burns, illnesses or diseases in which most of their skin is destroyed. It allows skin to be replaced because it is able to regrow itself from undamaged cells. Usually, unharmed cells are put into a sterile environment with resources and all nutrients the cells need to reproduce, and, through mitosis, the skin sample eventually regrows. Then, scientists graft the skin back onto the patient. This is extremely important because it allows for damaged skin to be repaired and for patients suffering to live normally. As for therapy, though some scientists view it as more philosophical, it is still definitely a science. Brent undergoes therapy, the attempted reversal of certain negative or harmful psychological behaviors, for about a year and is eventually "cured," becoming happier and more normal.

Questions: What is the point at which the cells are not able to be duplicated?
Do the cells have to be living or does the DNA just have to be accessible?
How exactly do narcotics work and which areas of the brain specifically do they affect and in what ways?

Resources:
Book: Runyon, Brent. The Burn Journals. New York: Random House, 2004. Print.
Image: http://www.cityofpuyallup.org/files/library/15b2426677a2590e.jpg