A 10-year retrospective study of heat press injury: Characteristics and risk factor for amputation

Abstract

PurposeThe diagnostic grading system for heat press injury has remained the same for decades and depends solely on surgical observation. This study described the demographic and clinical characteristics of such patients and investigated potential predictive factors for amputation. Methods129 patients diagnosed with heat press injury were admitted at Beijing Jishuitan Hospital from 2010 to 2019. Their demographic and clinical characteristics were described and 64 patients were included in a retrospective cohort to assess the risk factors of amputation with univariable and multivariable logistic regression. ResultThe annual partial incidence rate of heat press injury was at least 1–4 cases per 10,000,000 people in Beijing. Of our 129 patients, 85 were men and the mean age was 32 years, 126 caused by machines, 70 with full-thickness burns but no open wounds, and the median total body surface area (TBSA) was 1%. After logistic regression, only insufficient perfusion of the extremities (odds ratio = 156.48; 95% confidence interval = 11.24−2177.92) was associated with the risk of amputation, where 12 of 20 patients lost more than 1 phalanx. ConclusionIndustrial machines, working age, small TBSA, digit or hand injuries, and full-thickness skin injuries were common in our patients. Insufficient perfusion of extremities was an independent risk factor for amputation, while other indicators, including TBSA, D-dimer level, and white blood cell count, did not.