| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3104099 | Burns | 2016 | 7 Pages |
•We described the pre-hospital, emergency department and ICU care of victims from a fire disaster.•The course of disease is mainly determined by the percentage of burned body surface area.•The degree of inhalation injury seems to have a less important role.
ObjectiveTo describe the pre-hospital, emergency department, and intensive care unit (ICU) care and prognosis of patients with inhalation injury after exposure to indoor fire and smoke.Materials and methodsThis is a prospective observational cohort study that includes patients admitted to seven ICUs after a fire disaster. The following data were collected: demographic characteristics; use of fiberoptic bronchoscopy; degree of inhalation injury; percentage of burned body surface area; mechanical ventilation parameters; and subsequent events during ICU stay. Patients were followed to determine the ICU and hospital mortality rates.ResultsWithin 24 h of the incident, 68 patients were admitted to seven ICUs. The patients were young and had no comorbidities. Most patients (n = 35; 51.5%) only had an inhalation injury. The mean ventilator-free days for patients with an inhalation injury degree of 0 or I was 12.5 ± 8.1 days. For patients with an inhalation injury degree of II or III, the mean ventilator-free days was 9.4 ± 5.8 days (p = 0.12). In terms of the length of ICU stay for patients with degrees 0 or I, and patients with degrees II or III, the median was 7.0 days (5.0–8.0 days) and 12.0 days (8.0–23.0 days) (p < 0.001), respectively. In addition, patients with a larger percentage of burned surface areas also had a longer ICU stay; however, no association with ventilator-free days was found. The patients with <10% of burned body surface area showed a mean of 9.2 ± 5.4 ventilator-free days. The mean ventilator-free days for patients who had >10% burned body surface area was 11.9 ± 9.5 (p = 0.26). The length of ICU stay for the <10% and >10% burned body surface area patients was 7.0 days (5.0–10.0 days) and 23.0 days (11.5–25.5 days) (p < 0.001), respectively.ConclusionsWe conclude that burn patients with inhalation injuries have different courses of disease, which are mainly determined by the percentage of burned body surface area.
