Journal of burn care & research : official publication of the American Burn Association
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As the overall survival rate for burn injury has improved, increased emphasis is placed on postburn morbidity and the optimization of functional and cosmetic outcomes. One major cause of morbidity and functional deficits is that of joint contractures. The true incidence of postburn contractures and their associated risk factors remains unknown. ⋯ Predictors of the number of contractures included male sex, medical problems, flash burn, neuropathy, TBSA burned, and TBSA grafted. Similar to a previous single-center study on postburn contractures, approximately one third of the patients with an eligible burn injury requiring autografting developed a contracture at hospital discharge. It is likely that these contractures develop despite early therapeutic interventions such as positioning and splinting; therefore, the challenge to the burn community remains, to identify new and better prevention strategies.
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Comparative Study Observational Study
Low Vitamin D Level on Admission for Burn Injury Is Associated With Increased Length of Stay.
Currently, there have been few studies that have evaluated the incidence of vitamin D deficiency in adult burn patients or correlated vitamin D levels with burn-related outcomes. The primary objective of the study was to identify the incidence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency in an adult burn population. The secondary objective was to determine the impact of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency on clinical outcomes in burn care. ⋯ Patients with vitamin D deficiency or insufficiency experienced higher rates of complications and longer ICU and hospital LOS compared with those with normal vitamin D levels. A large proportion of patients with burn injury presented with vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency which was associated with poor outcomes, including prolonged ICU and hospital LOS. Additional studies are needed to further describe the relationship between vitamin D status and clinical outcomes.
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On July 2012, a rehabilitation hospital merged with a trauma center where the regional burn center is located. That rehabilitation center provides the only burn rehabilitation program in our region. The objective of this study was to determine if earlier initiation of inpatient rehabilitation after merger had an effect on burn survivors' functional outcomes and resource utilization. ⋯ Patients transferred before the merger had significantly more chemical burns (5% vs 0%, P = .046), and more work-related burns (26.7% vs 7.7%, P = .004). Patients transferred after the merger had significantly shorter burn center LOS (28.5 ± 20.9 days vs 38.8 ± 34.2 days, P = .043), and shorter waiting time for rehab (0.7 ± 1.1 days vs 1.5 ± 2.3 days, P = .010) than patients transferred before the merger. Early initiation of inpatient rehabilitation, after the burn center and the inpatient rehabilitation service were located in the same hospital, improved burn survivors' resource utilization.
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Visual diagnosis of second-degree burns has proven inadequate for determining the appropriate treatment regimen. Although multiple noninvasive imaging techniques have shown promise for providing information about burn wound severity, the ideal technology to aid burn wound excision would provide real-time readouts. Herein, the authors examine a high-resolution infrared (IR) camera (thermography) and a multiprobe adapter system (MPAS-6; transepidermal evaporative water loss, colorimetry) to assess their usefulness in predicting burn severity. ⋯ Importantly, surface temperature taken on every single day after injury was predictive of all histologically determined measurements of burn depth (ie, collagen coagulation, apoptosis, necrosis, vascular occlusion). The results indicate that IR imaging and skin quality probes can be used to support the diagnosis of burn severity. Most importantly, IR measurements gave insight into both the zone of coagulation and the zone of stasis on every postburn day studied.
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As a result of many years of research, the intricate cellular mechanisms of burn injury are slowly becoming clear. Yet, knowledge of these cellular mechanisms and a multitude of resulting studies have often failed to translate into improved clinical treatment for burn injuries. Perhaps the most valuable information to date is the years of clinical experience and observations in the management and treatment of patients, which has contributed to a gradual improvement in reported outcomes of mortality. This review provides a discussion of the cellular mechanisms and pathways involved in burn injury, resultant systemic effects on organ systems, current management and treatment, and potential therapies that we may see implemented in the future.