Burns : journal of the International Society for Burn Injuries
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The purpose of this study was to determine whether having a previous diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) changed acute care needs in burn-injured patients. ⋯ Patients with concurrent burn injuries and MS have a significantly longer LOS/% TBSA burn suggesting that more time is required to heal their wounds. Surprisingly, there were no other significant differences in the after the burn acute phase between these two cohorts.
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The purpose of the research was to determine the efficacy of the Caprini risk assessment model for the guidance of prophylactic treatments for a 3-year period in the burn center of the Inner Mongolia region. ⋯ Caprini score allows for informed decision-making regarding prophylaxis strategies. Early ambulation and mechanical prophylaxis are recommended for patients predisposed to VTE.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of military and civilian burn patients admitted to a single center during 12 years of war.
The current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan resulted in an increased incidence of burn injury in the military population. We sought to compare the characteristics and outcomes of this population to a civilian cohort cared for at the same burn center over the same time-period. ⋯ Military patients exhibited improved survival and functional recovery over their civilian counterparts. However, mortality did not differ between civilian and military patients after controlling for known covariates. Further studies are needed to improve functional outcomes in civilian patients, who may not have the inherent advantages of younger age and healthier physical status found in military patients.
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Acute management of a severely burned patient is an infrequent and stressful situation that requires medical knowledge as well as immediate coordinated action. Many adverse events in health care result from issues related to the application of 'non-technical' skills such as communication, teamwork, leadership and decision making rather than lack of medical knowledge. Training in these skills is known as Crisis Resource Management (CRM) training. ⋯ Participants felt that the course developed their ability to interact with other team members, further improved their understanding of how to appropriately use resources, emphasized the importance of role clarity and developed their communication skills. Additional quantitative and qualitative analyses obtained from participants were also reviewed after each course. The SIMBurns course aims to contribute to the education of those in healthcare in order to improve patient safety and to continue advancing the education of our emergency burn care teams.
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Healing of burn wounds is necessary for survival; however tracking progression or healing of burns is an inexact science. Recently, the relationship of mortality and wound healing has been documented with a software termed WoundFlow. The objective of the current study was to confirm various factors that impact burn wound healing, as well as to establish a timeline and rate of successful healing. ⋯ When %TBSA was stratified by decile, the 40-49% TBSA group had the highest healing rate. Taken together, the data indicate that wound healing trajectory (%OW) varies with injury severity and survival. As such, automated mapping of wound healing trajectory may provide valuable information concerning patient/prognosis, and may recommend early interventions to optimize wound healing.