The initial management of mild and moderate burned patients in the emergency department: an expert consensus statement

On behalf of Italian Society of Emergency Medicine (SIMEU), Association of Italian Hospital Dermatologists Venereologists and Public Health (ADOI) and Italian Skin Ulcer Association (AIUC). Early diagnosis and treatment of burn patients are a key issue in the emergency setting. With the aim of assisting physicians in the diagnosis and subsequent management of burns in emergency departments (EDs), a Nominal Group Technique (NGT) was designated. A group of 6 Italian experts (2 emergency physicians, 2 emergency medicine nurses, and 2 dermatologists chief of a burn center) developed a consensus document based on the available evidence and their clinical experience on the fundamental steps to be followed in the ED in the management of patients with a mild to moderate degree burn. The expert consensus statement proposed can assist emergency physicians in applying the results of clinical studies and clinical experience to routine care settings, providing guidance on all aspects of 7 steps: prehospital treatment, centralization criteria, transport (equipment and composition of the healthcare team), management of ED phase, clinical evaluation, treatment of pain and disposition.