Burns : journal of the International Society for Burn Injuries
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Health and logistical needs in emergencies have been well recognised. The last 7 years has witnessed improved professionalisation and standardisation of care for disaster affected communities - led in part by the World Health Organisation Emergency Medical Team (EMT) initiative. Mass casualty incidents (MCIs) resulting in burn injuries present unique challenges. ⋯ Developing globally relevant recommendations is a first step in addressing this deficit and increasing preparedness to deal with such disasters. Global burn experts were invited to a succession of Technical Working Group on burns (TWGB) meetings to: 1) review literature on burn care in MCIs; and 2) define and agree on recommendations for burn care in MCIs. The resulting 22 recommendations provide a framework to guide national and international specialist burn teams and health facilities to support delivery of safe care and improved outcomes to burn patients in MCIs.
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Review Meta Analysis
Fractional CO2 laser treatment for burn scar improvement: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Burn injury can cause abnormal healing and pathologic scar formation that significantly impairs patients' ability to return to baseline levels of functioning. Quality of life can be significantly diminished due to pain, stiffness, contracture, and the psychological burden of disfigurement. Traditional scar therapies such as silicone sheeting and compression garments are highly reliant on patient compliance, and have not demonstrated satisfactory efficacy. ⋯ To address this, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine the efficacy of fractional CO2 lasers in treating burn scars, and found that laser therapy alone yielded statistically significant improvements in scar profiles. There were very few reports of adverse effects, most treatments were provided as outpatient, and both patient and burn practitioners reported high satisfaction. By sharing our findings, we hope that more burn practitioners will consider adopting laser therapy as a safe and cost-effective first-line therapy for burn scar management.
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Microbial contamination of human skin allografts is a frequent cause of allograft discard. Our purpose was to evaluate the discard rate of skin bank contaminated allografts and specific procedures used to reduce allograft contamination without affecting safety. ⋯ Few simple pragmatic measures (including skin incubation in the antibiotic bath for at least 96 h at 4 °C, splitting the skin harvesting areas to minimize the risk of cross-infection and clinical use of allografts contaminated with saprophytic and non-pathogenic germs) can reduce the discard rate of contaminated allografts without affecting clinical safety.
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Observational Study
Orofacial rehabilitation after severe orofacial and neck burn: Experience in a Brazilian burn reference centre.
To quantify the benefits of a functional oral rehabilitation program for impairment caused by full thickness orofacial and neck burns, comparing the effects of early and late intervention. ⋯ The results of this study indicate that non-invasive orofacial contracture management is effective for patients with orofacial and neck burns, including those with long term sequelae.
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Review
Narrative discourse of burn injury and recovery on peer support websites: A qualitative analysis.
Although advances have been made in burn care and recovery, less is known about the experience of living with severe burn injury. Like other patient groups, burn survivors are now turning to social media and shared web-based peer support resources during recovery and continuing long after discharge. Ongoing peer support is often part of the reclamation process after-burn injury. Peer support and event sharing helps foster hope, motivation and reassurance.