Smoke, Scars, and Survival: A Six-Year Analysis of Burn Mortality in a Resource-Limited Appalachian ICU

In this Appalachian cohort of adult burn patients, mortality was significantly associated with larger burn size, prolonged ventilation, inhalation injury, smoking, and comorbidities such as diabetes, COPD, and home oxygen use. These findings highlight the need for individualized, multidisciplinary care strategies in resource-limited rural settings. Efforts to standardize inhalation injury diagnostics and enhance access to burn care may improve outcomes. Future studies should focus on scalable interventions and policy changes to reduce disparities in burn care and improve survival in underserved populations.