Sodium Hydroxide

[WannaBeMarryPoppins]

I hope to get more answers here, sorry hat it's the wrong topic. I spilled some Mr Muscle Drain and Sink stuff on my foot and it contains sodium hydroxide.
I rinsed it right away but the bottle said that it's corrosive and that medical attention should be sought.
I called NHS direct but am waiting for them to call back.

Does anyone have any experience? I know it's probably fine but I am sitting here waiting now and have to get up at 7.

They just called me back and said to keep an eye on it. It could apparently still cause burning or swelling several hours later

This will teach me not to do stupid cleaning in the middle of the night

Wash with lots of cold water - don't cover it with a dressing. It probably isn't that concentrated so should be ok.

lol relax, I always get it all over myself and I've always been fine xx

That's lye, basically.

You'll be fine - it will give you a chemical burn, but if you washed it off straight away you'll be ok. Swallowing it would be the really bad thing!

hahahaha

I can't believe you called NHS direct!

Good lord. No wonder the NHS is haemorraging money.

Thanks everyone. It is quite sore today but it's fine.

Alpine, it said on the bottle to seek immediate medical attention so I gave them a quick call just to make sure. I was alone with no one else to talk to to make sure it would be fine so I thought it would be the safest option

I really pleased your foot is ok, consider it a lesson learned chemical burns can be truly awful.

You did right to ring the NHS Direct thats what its there for!

I do beesimo, not going to do this stuff when really tired again. I just thought it could soak over night and would be quick to do...

Thanks for reassuring me about the NHS direct thing. It was the first time I called them and she gave some good advice how to deal with it and what to look out for in the next few days.

The scientist in me has just had a look at the MSDS (material safety data sheet) online, and the guidelines for skin contact say to flush the contaminated area with running water, so you did the right thing rinsing it. (interestingly, if you spill sodium hydroxide onto bare skin, when rinsing it you may find that the skin feels soapy - you are indeed making soap from the fat in your skin reacting with the sodium hydroxide... Slightly unpleasent thought really...)

With most things chemical (with a few rare exceptions), if you spill them on yourself, the best thing to do is rinse with lots of running water. By doing this, you dilute the chemical and thereby reduce the potential for any harmful effects it might have. Calling NHS direct was also the right thing to do. Hope your foot feels better soon.