Investigation of burn cases presenting to the emergency department: Clinical practices and epidemiological features

Aim: The clinical and epidemiological characteristics of patients presenting to the emergency department with burn injuries were evaluated. The treatments were compared with current studies, and the findings were presented to contribute to the literature. Material and Method: The study included patients admitted to the hospital with burn injuries in 2022 year. Electronic records, e-prescriptions, and patient files were retrospectively reviewed. The obtained data were analyzed and presented. Results: A large portion of the 131 patients in our study are adolescents and children (32.8%). The most affected area is the upper extremities, and second-degree burns are generally observed (37.4%). The type of injury is usually thermal burns and scalds (56.4%). Cases are most seen in the summer months (32.1%). While burn injuries are more common during working hours in the general population, these injuries occur out of working hours’ (59%) and at home (95.4%) in the pediatric age group. Patients were generally given wound dressing, wound cleaning (It involves washing the wound with isotonic saline solution and removing necrotic tissue and foreign bodies, if present), analgesia, and tetanus prophylaxis. At the time of the first visit, 27.5% of the patients were treated with antibiotics, and 31.3% were prescribed antibiotics at discharge. Conclusion: Burn injuries are common traumas. The use of antibiotics during initial intervention and discharge is remarkably high. Children are more frequently affected by burn injuries. Particularly in this age group, there is a need to develop protective and preventive approaches.