Epidemiology of isolated foot burns in children presenting to a Queensland paediatric burns centre- a two-year study in warmer climate

Abstract

Background: European studies of paediatric foot burns report scalds as the leading cause. Mechanisms of injury are different in warmer climates. We sought to characterize the mechanisms and outcomes of isolated foot burns in our population.; Methods: Retrospective review of a prospectively collected database of all children aged 0-15 years presenting to a Queensland paediatric burns centre over a 26-month period. Non-parametric analyses such as the Mann-Whitney U and Pearson Chi-square were used.; Results: There were 218 children with foot burns treated over a period of 2 years and 2 months of which 214 had complete records. There were significantly more boys than girls ( n = 134, 62.6% cf. n = 80, 37.4%, p < 0.0001). The leading mechanism of injury was a contact burn accounting for 63.1% ( n = 135) followed by scalds (23.8%, n = 51). Friction, flame and chemical burns were a minority but were significantly deeper ( p = 0.03) and significantly more likely to require grafting ( p = 0.04) and scar management ( p < 0.0001) compared to contact and scald burns.; Conclusions: In our population, contact burns are the most common mechanism of injury causing burns to the feet. The leading aetiology is campfire burns, which account for one-third of all burns to the feet. Prevention campaigns targeted at this population could significantly reduce the burden of morbidity from these burns. Friction, flame and chemical burns constitute a minority of patients but are deeper and more likely to require skin grafting and scar management.eCollection. Cited Medium: Print. NLM ISO Abbr: Burns Trauma. PubMed Central ID: PMC5330149. Linked References: Burns. 2008 Dec;34(8):1153-7. (PMID: 18789590); Burns Incl Therm Inj. 1988 Apr;14(2):156-60. (PMID: 2898969); Burns. 2002 Jun;28(4):374-8. (PMID: 12052377); Burns Trauma. 2015 Jun 15;3:5. (PMID: 27574651); Burns. 2007 Dec;33(8):1041-5. (PMID: 17433550); J Trauma. 1995 Sep;39(3):560-2. (PMID: 7473924); J Trauma. 1992 Nov;33(5):662-4. (PMID: 1361207); Burns. 2000 Feb;26(1):102-5. (PMID: 10630327); Burns. 2015 Feb;41(1):177-80. (PMID: 25034242); J Burn Care Rehabil. 1993 Jan-Feb;14(1):34-8. (PMID: 8095936); Burns. 2006 Dec;32(8):992-9. (PMID: 16901651); Burns Incl Therm Inj. 1987 Oct;13(5):416-8. (PMID: 3427502); Ann Plast Surg. 2004 Nov;53(5):462-4. (PMID: 15502462); Burns. 2001 Dec;27(8):791-2. (PMID: 11718980); J Burn Care Rehabil. 1988 Jan-Feb;9(1):92-5. (PMID: 2895775); Burns. 1996 Dec;22(8):644-5. (PMID: 8982548); Burns. 2015 Aug;41(5):946-55. (PMID: 25687836); J Burn Care Rehabil. 1987 May-Jun;8(3):192-4. (PMID: 2886507); Burns. 2014 Aug;40(5):1030-2. (PMID: 24280525). Linking ISSN: 23213868. Subset: PubMed not MEDLINE; Date of Electronic Publication: 2017 Feb 28. Current Imprints: Publication: 2020- : Oxford : Oxford University Press; Original Imprints: Publication: [Mumbai] : published by Wolters Kluwer Health - Medknow, Institute of Burn Research, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, China ; [2013]- <br />