The Journal of burn care & rehabilitation
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J Burn Care Rehabil · Nov 2002
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialA prospective, randomized comparison of the Volume Diffusive Respirator vs conventional ventilation for ventilation of burned children. 2001 ABA paper.
The Volume Diffusive Respirator (VDR) is a high-frequency time cycled pressure ventilator that can ventilate, oxygenate, and promote secretion removal. The VDR provides ventilation at lower airway pressures than those required for conventional ventilation in the pressure control mode (PCV). A prospective, randomized, institutional review board-approved study was conducted comparing the VDR to PCV in burned children with respiratory failure from all causes. ⋯ Patients ventilated with the VDR required significantly lower peak inspiratory pressure and achieved a significantly higher PaO2 /FIO2 ratio compared with PCV. This demonstrates the VDR is a safe and effective method of ventilation for pediatric burn patients and it offers advantages when compared with conventional ventilation.
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J Burn Care Rehabil · Nov 2002
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialThe 2002 Clinical Research Award. An evaluation of the safety of early vs delayed enteral support and effects on clinical, nutritional, and endocrine outcomes after severe burns.
Early enteral support is believed to improve gastrointestinal, immunological, nutritional, and metabolic responses to critical injury; however, this premise is in need of further substantiation by definitive data. The purpose of this prospective study was to examine the effectiveness and safety of early enteral feeding in pediatric patients who had burns in excess of 25% total body surface area. Seventy-seven patients with a mean percent total body surface area burn of 52.5 +/- 2.3 (range 26-91), percent full thickness injury of 44.7 +/- 2.8 (range 0-90), and age ranging from 3.1 to 18.4 (mean 9.3 +/- 0.5) were randomized to two groups: early (feeding within 24 hours of injury) vs control (feeding delayed at least 48 hours postburn). ⋯ In conclusion, provision of enteral nutrients shortly after burn injury reduces caloric deficits and may stimulate insulin secretion and protein retention during the early phase postburn. These data, however, do not necessarily reaffirm the safety of early enteral feeding, nor do they associate earlier feeding with a direct improvement in endocrine status or a reduction in morbidity, mortality, hypermetabolism, or hospital stay. Future studies are needed to establish precise feeding implementation times that maximize clinical benefit while minimizing morbidity in the critically injured burn patient.
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J Burn Care Rehabil · Nov 2002
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialThe 2002 Lindberg Award. PRN vs regularly scheduled opioid analgesics in pediatric burn patients.
Very little has been published on treating acute pain in children younger than the age of 3 for burns or any other trauma etiology. This study prospectively monitored the pain behavior and opioid analgesic intake of 31 pediatric burn patients (mean age = 23.71 months; SD = 15.75). Twelve of those children were randomized to conditions in which they either received opioid analgesics pro re nata (ie, as needed, pain contingent) or on a regular basis. ⋯ As such, the pro re nata group was likely medicated largely on a regularly scheduled basis. For most of the remaining (nonrandomized) subjects, physicians ordered regularly scheduled opioid analgesics, suggesting that this practice has become largely institutionalized in the study setting. Information on pediatric opioid analgesic dosing and pain measurement strategies for nonverbal subjects can be derived from the findings.
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J Burn Care Rehabil · Nov 2002
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialEarly tracheostomy does not improve outcome in burn patients.
Early tracheostomy (ET) has been claimed to reduce ventilator support or intensive care unit or hospital length of stay in intensive care unit patients. This study was performed to assess the potential benefits of ET in burn patients. From October 1996 to July 2001, we evaluated all intubated and acutely burned adults using a formula to predict the probability of prolonged ventilator dependence. ⋯ However, six CON patients (26%) were successfully extubated by PBD 14 compared with one ET patient (P <.01). Although tracheostomy offers some advantages in terms of patient comfort and security, routine performance of ET in burn patients does not improve outcomes, nor does it result in earlier extubation. This may be partly caused by the comfort and convenience of tracheostomy.
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J Burn Care Rehabil · Nov 2002
Comparative StudyThe utility of D-dimer levels in screening for thromboembolic complications in burn patients.
Recent studies confirm that thromboembolic complications in burn patients are higher than previously reported. Swelling, pain, and erythema are not useful indicators of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) in burned extremities. We propose that D-dimer levels may be useful in determining which patients would benefit from further screening for DVT. ⋯ The mean time to DVT diagnosis was 6.7 days. D-dimer levels were elevated in 86% of DVT patients at week 1, with a negative predictive value of 94%. The evaluation of elevated D-dimer levels at week 1 may be a useful screening tool for detecting DVT in the burn population.