Epidemiological Study of Hospitalized Burn Patients in Rural Area

Abstract

Background: Burns represent one of the major health problems in India. Epidemiological study is the first step in planning preventive and management strategies. Objective: To study some of the important epidemiological factors in relation to burn cases at a tertiary care level teaching hospital in rural area. Methods: Present study was retrospective study of all burn injury cases admitted at tertiary care level teaching hospital situated in rural area. The information obtained was tabulated analyzed using the software GraphPad Instat. Mean, median, and standard deviation (SD) were calculated where applicable. Chi-square test was used as a test of significance. Results: Overall female burn patients were significantly higher than male (χ2= 6.480, p = 0.01). Majority of female patients (68.64%) had total burn surface area more than 35% whereas 48.70% of the male patients had a total burn surface area more than 35% (χ2= 7.99, p = 0.005). Superficial to deep burns were present in 97% of patients. Majority (80%) of the burn injuries were allegedly accidental. Thermal burn was the commonest cause of burn followed by scalds. In majority of the patients (91.8%) burns were caused by flame occurred at home. Conclusion: Most of the time lack of safety measures is an important cause for burn. The most important step is public education on safer first-aid practices, availability of good burn care facilities in all public institutions as near to the place of accident as possible.

Clinico-epidemiological study of burns: our experience with 500 patients

“…Similar findings have been observed in studies reported by Akther JM et al and Deshpande JD et al 3,4 High incidence of burns in this age group may be because this age group is generally more active age group and more commonly exposed to hazards both at work and at home. This age group also included newly married females who became victims of bride burning.…”

“…[2][3][4][5][6][7] Female predominance may be because in our country cooking is considered as the primary responsibility of females so they are more commonly exposed to fire than males. Indian females wear loose fitting clothes like Sari, dupatta which can catch fire easily.…”

“…This is in accordance with the various other national studies. 3,4 and international studies. [20][21] Flame was the commonest cause of burn noted in our study.…”

“…Similar findings were reported in various other studies conducted in developing countries. 3,4 High incidence of flame burn was explained by the fact that in villages kerosene stove, kerosene lamps, Chullha, Shegadi are commonly used for cooking. Kerosene is commonly used in rural area as domestic fuel as it is cheap and easily accessible.…”

“…This finding is in accordance with other studies. 3,4 Least common nature of burn is homicidal. Homicidal burns are also common in newly married female but in many cases the actual nature of burn is not disclosed by the patient either due to pressure or emotional blackmailing by in-laws or relatives.…”