Paediatric burn injuries requiring hospitalization in Fars, Southern Iran

The aim of this study was to determine the demographic characteristics of burnt children in need of hospitalization, causes of burns and associated complications in Fars province, Iran. This is a retrospective cross-sectional study. Files of all children under 15 years of age who were hospitalized in the only burn referral centre of Fars province were evaluated. Data regarding age, gender, location (urban, rural), burn surface area (BSA), cause of burn, length of hospital stay and complications were extracted from patients' files. Data were analyzed using SPSS, version 22 and the Chi-square test. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. A total of 122 patients (54.9% males) were studied. Children from rural areas were hospitalized 1.4 times more often than urban children. Overall, 31.2% of admissions occurred in winter. Burning with hot liquids (scalding) was the most common cause of burns (56.6%, n = 69). Mean BSA was 12.29 ± 21.18% and mean length of hospital stay was 7.59 ± 12.78 days. Burn complications were seen in 19 cases (15.6%). One child died due to inhalational thermal injury. This study showed that burns mostly occur in boys, in the winter and in rural areas of Fars province. Furthermore, scald burns are the most common type of burn injury. Since a significant number of children suffer from permanent complications following burn injuries, special planning is needed to prevent this type of injury.