What Is a Fifth-Degree Burn?

If you’re reading this, you or someone you love may be facing a serious burn. We’re sorry you’re dealing with this, and we hope this guide helps.

One medical source defines the term “fifth-degree burn.” In that source, it means a burn that reaches muscle. A fourth-degree burn reaches fat. A sixth-degree burn reaches bone. Not every classification system uses these terms. Most burn care sorts injuries into first- through fourth-degree burns, or by depth: superficial, partial-thickness, and full-thickness. One source goes further and describes fifth- and sixth-degree burns for the deepest injuries.

The American Burn Association says a burn that reaches bone or muscle needs emergency care. We’re LGR Law Firm, a Texas personal injury firm based in Austin, with a second office in Terrell. This guide explains how burns are classified, how doctors treat the deepest burns, and what legal rights Texas law gives someone hurt in a severe burn injury.

How Are Burns Classified?

Most doctors classify burns by depth, not by counting degrees. A StatPearls medical guide on burn evaluation sorts burns into three depths, based on how far the injury reaches into the skin.

• Superficial (first-degree): reaches only the top layer of skin.
• Partial-thickness (second-degree): reaches into the layer just below it. How deep it goes can vary.
• Full-thickness (third-degree): goes through the skin into the fat below it, or deeper. It can look white, brown, or charred, and often feels firm, with little or no pain.

Cleveland Clinic says the old system of naming burns by degree is not used as much anymore. A 2024 medical review called three-degree systems the more common approach today. Even sources that use degree names don’t fully agree on where a fourth-degree burn stops. Some call any burn past full-thickness a fourth-degree burn, whether it reaches muscle or bone. One StatPearls chapter on burn surgery instead splits that area into three levels: fourth-degree for fat, fifth-degree for muscle, and sixth-degree for bone.

KEY TAKEAWAY

Most burn guides stop at three or four degrees. A fifth and sixth degree are defined in only one source.

What Is a 5th-Degree Burn, and What Is a 6th-Degree Burn?

One StatPearls chapter, on burn surgery and reconstruction, defines both a fifth- and a sixth-degree burn. It sorts burns below the skin by the tissue they reach. A fourth-degree burn reaches fat. A fifth-degree burn reaches muscle. A sixth-degree burn reaches bone. The chapter says burns this deep need surgery, and possibly reconstruction.

Other sources use the term “fourth-degree” more broadly. Cleveland Clinic says burns that reach muscle, nerves, or bone are uncommon. Experts sometimes call these fourth-degree burns, with no separate fifth or sixth tier. The American Burn Association’s patient guide also stops at fourth-degree.

The fifth- and sixth-degree terms go back a long way. A 1994 study’s title refers to Dupuytren’s fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-degree burns. The study’s abstract does not say what tissue those fifth- and sixth-degree tiers reach.

Burns this deep can happen in many ways. They can follow contact with high-voltage electricity, a construction site accident, or a product that malfunctions.

How Are Severe Burns Treated?

Burns that reach fat, muscle, or bone usually need surgery. StatPearls says full-thickness burns often need skin grafts. The main surgeries are cutting away dead tissue, grafting new skin, and rebuilding the area. Doing this early – about two to twelve days after the burn – is called the most important step in hospital care.

A burn that wraps all the way around a limb needs a cut through the burned tissue, called an escharotomy. This relieves pressure and helps prevent a dangerous buildup called compartment syndrome. When a burn is deep, doctors may take healthy skin from another part of the body. This usually comes from the thigh or back, the American Burn Association says.

One 2006 study followed 21 patients with fourth-degree burns to the leg. On average, they needed eight surgeries. Doctors amputated 7 of the limbs, in 4 patients (18%). This is one small, older study, not a rate that applies to everyone.

Recovery continues after the hospital. The American Burn Association says rehab can happen in a hospital, a rehab center, a skilled nursing facility, or an outpatient clinic. Many patients need physical therapy for a long time to regain muscle mass and function.

Complications of Severe Burns

Even with fast treatment, deep burns carry real risks. StatPearls says infection is the most common complication. Cleveland Clinic explains that damaged skin can’t keep germs out. That’s one reason burns get infected so easily. In bad cases, infection can turn into sepsis, an overwhelming, life-threatening immune reaction to spreading infections.

Full-thickness burns are often painless. The nerve endings under the skin are destroyed along with the skin’s blood supply, StatPearls explains.

Longer-term problems, per StatPearls, can include:

• Scarring after a skin graft, which can cause anxiety, depression, pain, itching, altered pigmentation, temperature intolerance, and less range of motion.
• A sped-up metabolism (called a hypermetabolic state) that may last for years and may decrease bone density and muscle mass.
• Lasting emotional effects, including post-traumatic stress disorder, which can follow a serious burn.

Contractures are another possible complication of a severe burn. A medical textbook on scar care notes they’re more common after severe or flame burns. They’re also more common in children and women, and around the neck, arms, and hands.

KEY TAKEAWAY

A burn can feel painless and still be severe. In a full-thickness burn, the nerve endings are destroyed. Pain is not a reliable warning sign.

Who May Be Liable for a Burn Injury in Texas?

Several parties can be responsible for a burn, depending on how it happened. A property owner may be liable to an invited visitor in some cases. To win, the injured person must prove the owner knew, or should have known, about an unsafe condition. The person must also prove the condition posed an unreasonable risk of harm. The owner must have failed to use reasonable care to reduce or fix the risk. And that failure must have caused the injury. This rule comes from a Texas Supreme Court case about a grocery store, not a burn case. But the same duty can apply to a premises liability claim after a burn. An employer may be liable for a burn at work, especially if the employer has opted out of the state workers’ comp system. The next section explains that rule.

A company that made a product that overheated or malfunctioned may also be liable. Under Texas product liability law, this can include claims based on negligence, strict liability, or a broken warranty. More than one party can share fault for a burn. It often takes a careful investigation to find everyone who may be responsible. This can include a workplace injury or a defective product that caused a fire.

What Compensation May Be Available in Texas?

Texas law allows a few types of compensation in a personal injury case. Under Chapter 41 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, economic damages cover real financial losses, like medical bills and lost wages. Noneconomic damages cover harder-to-measure losses, like pain and suffering, disfigurement, and loss of enjoyment of life.

A jury may also award exemplary damages, but only in narrow cases. Texas law requires clear and convincing proof that the harm came from fraud, malice, or gross negligence. These damages are meant to punish the at-fault party, not to compensate the injured person. Texas law caps exemplary damages in two ways. The cap is $200,000, or two times economic damages plus up to $750,000 in noneconomic damages, whichever is greater. A few kinds of serious criminal conduct fall outside this cap.

Texas’s Two-Year Deadline to File a Claim

Under the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, you generally have two years from the date of an injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. If a burn results in death, the two-year deadline still applies, but it starts on the date of death instead. Missing this deadline can end a claim for good, no matter how strong the case is.

The deadline can pause in a few situations. Texas law treats someone younger than 18, or of unsound mind, as under a legal disability. If that applies when the injury happens, that time doesn’t count toward the two-year limit. A disability that starts after the clock is already running does not pause it. Because these rules depend on the facts, it helps to have a lawyer check the dates in your case.

How Fault Affects a Claim in Texas

Texas uses a rule called modified comparative responsibility. If you were more than 50 percent at fault for your injury, Texas law bars you from recovering damages. If your share of fault is 50 percent or less, you can still recover money. But the court reduces your award by that percentage. Even a small increase in your assigned fault can lower how much you recover.

Burns at Work: Non-Subscriber Employers

In Texas, most private employers can choose whether to carry workers’ comp insurance. The Texas Department of Insurance says private employers can choose this coverage. It isn’t required in most cases. Employers who skip it are called non-subscribers.

If your employer carries workers’ comp, those benefits are usually your only remedy against the employer for a work injury. You generally can’t also sue the employer directly.

If your employer is a non-subscriber, that rule doesn’t apply. You can file a standard personal injury claim against the employer instead. The employer can’t argue you were partly at fault, took on the risk, or that a coworker caused the injury. You still have to prove the employer, or someone working for the employer, was negligent.

KEY TAKEAWAY

If your employer is a non-subscriber, a workplace burn may support a standard negligence claim instead of a workers’ comp claim. The employer can’t blame you or a coworker for the injury.

What to Do After a Severe Burn

The days after a severe burn matter for your health and for your legal options. Getting medical care first matters most, and it also creates records that can support a claim later. If you can, or if family can help, take photos of the injury, the cause, and the scene before conditions change.

If a product caused the burn, keep it. Don’t throw it away or try to fix it, since the product itself is often key evidence in a defective-product claim. Talk to a lawyer before giving a recorded statement to an insurance adjuster.

Evidence and memories fade fast. The two-year deadline keeps running the whole time. Contacting an attorney early can help protect your evidence and your options.

How LGR Can Help

LGR Law Firm represents burn injury victims from our offices in Austin and Terrell. We serve clients across Travis, Williamson, Hays, Bastrop, Caldwell, and Kaufman counties, and across Texas. We handle burn injury cases on a contingency fee. That means no attorney fee unless we recover compensation for you. If we don’t win, you don’t owe case expenses either. Our team can review your case, help identify who may be responsible, and walk you through the deadlines that apply to your situation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Ready to Talk to LGR Law Firm?

If you or someone you love has been badly burned in Texas, you don’t have to face the medical and legal details alone. Call (512) 800-8000 for a free consultation, or contact us online.

Attorney responsible for this content: Tray Gober (Kenneth Parks Gober, III), Managing Partner, LGR Law Firm, 11940 Jollyville Road, Suite 220-S, Austin, TX 78759.

This information is for educational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.