Journal of burn care & research : official publication of the American Burn Association
-
More than 30,000 firefighters are injured on the fireground each year. Literature suggests that injury often occurs when protective gear is not used properly. According to firefighters, failure to correctly wear protective equipment occurs for several reasons: (1) gear not used because of haste, (2) cumbersome gear can sometimes interfere with performance, and (3) cultural factors. ⋯ With such a shockingly high rate of unsafe firefighting, the profession is in need of additional education and reform. In response to this epidemic, a multidisciplinary educational program has been developed to improve firefighter awareness of gear limitations and burn injury risk. Effectiveness of educational programs should be documented in additional prospective studies.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial
Results of a prospective randomized controlled trial of early ambulation for patients with lower extremity autografts.
It is common practice to keep those patients with lower extremity autografts immobile until post-operative day (POD) 5. There is however inherent risks associated with even short periods of immobility. As of now there are no randomized controlled trials looking at early ambulation of patients with lower extremity autografts in the burn community. ⋯ No subjects required regrafting. There was a significant difference in the mean minutes of ambulation, with the EAG ambulating longer than the STG (EAG 23.4 minutes [SD 12.03], STG 14.1 [SD 9.00], P=.0235) on POD 5. Burn patients with lower extremity autografts can safely ambulate on POD 1 without fear of graft failure compared with those patients that remain on bed rest for 5 days.
-
In this experimental study, the effects of nanofiber dressings containing different forms of silver on full-thickness rat burn contaminated with Candida albicans was analyzed. A full-thickness skin burn was formed on a total of 32 Sprague-Dawley rats. After the burn wound was seeded with a 10 colony-forming units/ml standard strain of Candida albicans ATCC90028, the animals were divided into four groups. ⋯ The difference for Candida growth in the burn eschar between the control group and the 1% silver sulfadiazine-containing nanofiber dressing group was statistically significant (P< 0.01). Silver sulfadiazine-containing nanofiber dressing was the most effective agent in the treatment of Candida albicans-contaminated burn wounds. Because of their regenerative potential, silver-loaded nanofiber dressings could be a good alternative for infected burn wounds.
-
There is a paucity of literature on the personal experiences of burn support group members, the members' perceived benefits of group participation, and the meaning the survivors make of the support they receive. In order to provide effective psychosocial rehabilitation services and to meet the needs of burn survivors, it is important to understand the influence a support group has on its members as well as the personal experiences of those individuals who attend these groups. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of burn survivors in a burn survivor support group. ⋯ Their experiences mirrored much of the literature on psychological growth from adversity. Burn survivors reported unique opportunities that allowed them to integrate their injury into their identity within an encouraging and safe environment. Using these accounts, the authors generated clinical suggestions that may encourage similar growth in other support group settings.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial
Effect of virtual reality on adolescent pain during burn wound care.
The objective of this study was to compare the effect of virtual reality to passive distraction and standard care on burn treatment pain in adolescents. This single-blinded, randomized controlled study enrolled 30 adolescents who were 10 to 17 years of age from the burn clinic of a large children's hospital. After providing informed consent/assent, these participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups during wound care: standard care, passive distraction watching a movie, or virtual reality (VR) using a tripod-arm device rather than an immersive helmet. ⋯ This between-subjects clinical study provides further support for VR, even without requiring wearing of an immersive helmet, in lessening burn wound care pain in adolescents. Passive distraction by watching a movie may be less effective in reducing treatment pain. Additional between-subjects randomized controlled trials with larger samples of children and during other healthcare treatments may further support VR's effectiveness in pediatric procedural pain management.