• Clinics · Jul 2013

    Serum albumin level as a risk factor for mortality in burn patients.

    • Olivia Alejandra Aguayo-Becerra, Carlos Torres-Garibay, Michel Dassaejv Macías-Amezcua, Clotilde Fuentes-Orozco, Mariana de Guadalupe Chávez-Tostado, Elizabeth Andalón-Dueñas, Arturo Espinosa Partida, Andrea Del Socorro Alvarez-Villaseñor, Ana Olivia Cortés-Flores, and Alejandro González-Ojeda.
    • Internal Medicine and Geriatrics Department, Medical Unit of High Specialty, Mexican Institute of Social Security, Specialties Hospital of the Western Medical Center, Guadalajara, Jalisco/Mexico. avygail5@gmail.com
    • Clinics (Sao Paulo). 2013 Jul 1; 68 (7): 940-5.

    ObjectiveHypoalbuminemia is a common clinical deficiency in burn patients and is associated with complications related to increased extravascular fluid, including edema, abnormal healing, and susceptibility to sepsis. Some prognostic scales do not include biochemical parameters, whereas others consider them together with comorbidities. The purpose of this study was to determine whether serum albumin can predict mortality in burn patients.MethodsWe studied burn patients ≥16 years of age who had complete clinical documentation, including the Abbreviated Burn Severity Index, serum albumin, globulin, and lipids. Sensitivity and specificity analyses were performed to determine the cut-off level of albumin that predicts mortality.ResultsIn our analysis of 486 patients, we found that mortality was higher for burns caused by flame (p=0.000), full-thickness burns (p=0.004), inhalation injuries (p=0.000), burns affecting >30% of the body surface area (p=0.001), and burns associated with infection (p=0.008). Protein and lipid levels were lower in the patients who died (p<0.05). Albumin levels showed the highest sensitivity and specificity (84% and 83%, respectively), and the area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve (0.869) had a cut-off of 1.95 g/dL for mortality.ConclusionPatients with albumin levels <2 g/dL had a mortality risk of >80%, with 84% sensitivity and 83% specificity. At admission, the albumin level could be used as a sensitive and specific marker of burn severity and an indicator of mortality.

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