[Trends in mortality by burns in Mexico, 1979-2009]

To describe the trends in burn-related mortality rates in Mexico from 1979-2009.

Burn-related mortality standardized rates and trends were estimated from official mortality data in Mexico. Variables included were:age, sex, federal state and year of death.

From 1979-2009, 33,333 burn-related deaths were registered. During this period, the burn-mortality rate decreased, stating from a rate of 2.32/100,000 in 1979 and dropping to 0.72/100,000 in 2007, but in 2008 and 2009 the mortality rates occurred in the states of Baja California, Chihuahua, Baja California Sur,Sonora and Durango, all of these states in the northwest of Mexico. Men were twice as likely as women to die from burns.

Mortality caused by burns in Mexico presents a descendent tendency in most of the states of the Country, with the exception of the northwest region, which may be related to the lack of specialized units in the treatment of burn distance between the population centers and the specialized attention units.