[Epidemiology and specificities of childhood burns. A 300 case series in a national referral centre].

Abstract

Burns are considered a preventable cause of injury in children, associated with significant morbidity and mortality. We conducted a retrospective descriptive study including burned children managed in the burns resuscitation service of Tunis between January 2018 and July 2022. Three hundred burned children were included, representing 14% of admissions. The mean age was 8±5.4 years, with an age below 5 years in 36% of the cases. The majority of patients were male (61%) and the most frequent cause of injury was domestic accident (79%). Immolation by fire was noted only in adolescents. Burns were thermal in 90% of cases, caused by flames (44%) and hot liquids (38%). Electrical burns were noted in 10% of cases. The location of the burns was the home in 80% of cases, mainly the kitchen (44%). The average total burned skin area was 21±16%. The burns involved the trunk and limbs in 50% of cases. Initial cooling was performed in only 25% of cases. Mechanical ventilation was indicated in 22.7% of cases. Amputation of at least one limb was performed in eleven patients with electrical burns (3.7%). The median hospital stay was 14 days [1-172] with a mortality rate of 16%.