Journal of burn care & research : official publication of the American Burn Association
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The COVID-19 pandemic has brought with it many challenges in the field of healthcare around the world. Managing burn patients has its own challenges as they require a long duration of care and are more susceptible to infection. We conducted a retrospective observational study from January 30 to July 15, 2020 at our center to study the epidemiology of burns treated & patients and healthcare workers affected by COVID-19 during this period. ⋯ Our strategy underwent changes based on the changing dynamics of COVID-19 and changes in government and institutional policies. We have described the various challenges we faced in managing burns during this time. We found that effective screening of patients and healthcare workers, proper segregation of negative and positive/ suspect population and a low threshold for COVID-19 testing were essential to mitigate transmission of infection.
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Improvement in burn care has led to more patients surviving the injury but has also led to more burn survivors requiring rehabilitation for a protracted period after discharge. Thus, this review sought to map the intervention content and outcomes associated with existing postdischarge rehabilitation programs for adults surviving major burns. A systematic scoping review approach was utilized. ⋯ The findings suggest that long-term rehabilitation programs for adult burn survivors are lacking. More robust studies are also needed to examine community participation outcomes associated with burns rehabilitation programs. The nature of burns and its far-reaching consequences suggest a patient- and family-centered approach to rehabilitation.
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Burn injuries are severe problems for human. Accurate segmentation for burn wounds in patient surface can improve the calculation precision of %TBSA (total burn surface area), which is helpful in determining treatment plan. Recently, deep learning methods have been used to automatically segment wounds. ⋯ With nonsaturating loss with R2 regularization (NSLR2) and CASC, the segmentation network gains the best results. The framework achieved precision at 90.75%, PA at 96.88% and improved the DC from 84.5 to 89.3%. A burn data-generating framework have been built to improve the segmentation network, which can automatically segment burn images with higher accuracy and less time than traditional methods.
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Burn depth is a critical factor in determining the healing potential of a burn as the extent of injury ultimately guides overall treatment. Visible-Light Hyperspectral Imaging is an FDA-approved, noninvasive, and noncontrast imaging technology that uses light waves within the visible spectrum to evaluate skin and superficial soft tissue perfusion. In this case report, visible-light hyperspectral imaging was used to evaluate a 37-year-old male who presented to the Emergency Department with a thermal burn of the trunk, back, and right upper extremity. ⋯ Comparatively, visible-light hyperspectral imaging analysis of the permanently injured tissue demonstrated acute but varying changes in both oxygenated hemoglobin and deoxygenated hemoglobin at the time of initial evaluation. The most dramatic change in tissue oxygenation occurred between 6.5 and 39.3 hours, demonstrating visible-light hyperspectral imaging's ability to detect significant differences in oxygenation values between areas of second-degree superficial burns and areas of second-degree deep and third-degree burns in the acute period. The data suggest that the utilization of visible-light hyperspectral imaging in this 6.5- to 39.3-hour window may help predict final burn depth before clinical assessment, potentially allowing for surgical intervention within the first 48 hours following injury.