Synonyms in a broader sense
Sunburn is a burn I. degree by UV radiation, mainly by UV-B radiation of the wavelength 280 – 320 nm (nanometers). UVB rays have a shorter wavelength than UVA rays, they are therefore more energetic and cause more damage. Modern sunbeds therefore do not use UVB rays, but even pure UVA radiation can, with sufficient intensity, cause genetic damage and ultimately skin cancer.
Medically one divides burnings by UV-RADIATION depending upon strength into three degrees, mostly it concerns a burn I. degree. Redness and swelling as well as pain are in the foreground. With a sunburn II.
Grades sunburn already leads to blistering in the uppermost skin layer (epidermis). In the case of a grade III burn caused by UV radiation, the skin is severely damaged, which peels off over a large area and only heals with scarring. This most severe sunburn causes very severe pain and must be treated in hospital.
If UV rays penetrate the skin, they cause a change (denaturation) of the skin’s own proteins. This change causes the proteins to no longer be able to perform their function and the skin is damaged. The damage causes the production of certain messenger substances, so-called cytokines, which cause local inflammation.
This results in increased blood flow to the damaged area, while at the same time the blood vessels become more permeable for fluid and immune cells. Due to the increased fluid flow into the damaged cells, the skin swells and the increased blood flow leads to local redness. Since not all damage to the proteins can be repaired, this becomes noticeable with continuous or repeated strong UV radiation and the resulting sunburn through premature skin aging.
Especially UVA rays that penetrate deeper into the skin cause this damage to the connective and supporting tissue. The skin’s own supporting proteins, also known as collagens, are damaged in their structure, the skin becomes less elastic, slack and forms wrinkles early. However, not only the skin’s own proteins are damaged, but also the genetic material of the affected cells, the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid).
UVB rays in particular cause strand breaks in the DNA, which are difficult and often incorrectly repaired. If the DNA is repeatedly damaged, the cell’s behavior can change, it can grow uncontrollably and divide and thus become a cancer cell. The lens of the eye reacts most sensitively to UV rays and is also the least capable of repairing damage. The consequence of this is a clouding of the lens, the so-called cataract, which leads to blindness of the affected eye if left untreated.
