Study: Burn severity drives surgery timing

Editor's Note

Patients with more severe burns are more likely to undergo early surgical intervention, according to a May 27 report in Physician’s Weekly summarizing a multicenter cohort study published in Burns Open.

The study was based on 3,291 adult cases from three burn centers between 2009 and 2021 According to the article, patients with larger total body surface area (TBSA) burns, those aged 65 and older, individuals with psychiatric histories, and those with flame, flash, or contact burns (as opposed to scalds) were more likely to receive early surgery, which was defined as occurring within 7 days of injury. However, this group also experienced worse outcomes, likely reflecting the complexity and severity of their injuries.

Despite advances in burn care, the median time to first surgical intervention remained 14 days, echoing data from prior studies spanning 1995 to 2011. As detailed in the article, only 20% of patients received early surgery, and a slight upward trend in time to surgery was observed over the 13-year study period.

The study also found that the median time to surgery increased from 12 days to 16 days between 2014 and 2021. As reported in Physician’s Weekly, researchers attributed this shift partly to a rise in outpatient burn care, with some patients presenting later after their injury. This trend was supported by data showing longer times from injury to hospital admission in the late-surgery group.