[42 years' experience on the prevention and treatment of systemic infection after severe burn]

To summarize the experience of the management of 329 patients with major burn accompanied by severe systemic infection during the past 42 years, so as to help improve the treatment standard.

One thousand and one hundred twenty seven cases with major burns (TBSA > 50%) were admitted to our hospital during the past 42 years. The incidence of postburn systemic infection and change in the mortality were analyzed in terms of 3 periods, i.e. 1958 to 1980, 1981 to 1990 and 1991 to 2000.

Postburn systemic infection developed in 329 out of 1127 cases with the morbidity of 29.4%. The incidences of the infection were 48.5%, 29.3% and 13.1% in the 3 periods, consecutively, with significant differences between them (P < 0.01 similar 0.05). During the 3 periods of past 42 years, the overall cure rate and cure rates in patients with different TBSA increased gradually, especially in those with TBSA Larger than 70%.

The management of pastburn systemic infection was satisfactorily achieved by early comprehensive clinical measures such as immediate fluid resuscitation, early feeding, appropriate application of antibiotics and early escharectomy en masse, etc. which were established on the basis of experimental results.