Epidemiological analysis of burn patients in Hospital Melaka, Malaysia

Abstract

Background: Burn injury remains one of the most frequent public frequent public health concerns that are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. This study aims to understand the epidemiological profile of burn patients admitted to Burn Unit, Hospital Melaka between January 2016 and December 2018. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted to review burn cases that were admitted to Burn Unit, Hospital Melaka from January 2016 to December 2018. The epidemiological data of 241 patients were collected and studied. Results: The etiology of burn was determined: 230 (95.4%) thermal burns, 4 (1.7%) electrical burns, and 7 (2.9%) chemical burns. In 230 cases of thermal burn, 85 (37.0%) of accidents were caused by flames, 119 (51.7%) by scalds, and 26 (11.3%) by contact with hot objects. One hundred and eighty-nine (63.2%) of the patients were male, the remaining 110 patients (36.8%) were female. The female/male ratio was 1:1.7. The duration of hospitalization stay was 8 days. Mortality rate was 3.34% with 50% of deaths following major burn were due to sepsis with multiorgan failure. Conclusion: This study provides an overview on demographic features of burn patients admitted to Hospital Melaka.