The Unhoused State, Not Area Deprivation Index, Is an Independent Risk Factor for Resistant Infections in Burn...

Area of Science:

• Medical research
• Infectious disease epidemiology
• Burn care

Background:

• Burn patients are highly susceptible to infections.
• The impact of socioeconomic status on burn-related infections is not well understood.
• This study investigates the link between socioeconomic disadvantage and infection risk in burn patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the association between socioeconomic disadvantage and the risk of infection in burn patients.
• To explore if higher socioeconomic disadvantage correlates with increased infection rates.
• To identify specific patient factors influencing infection risk post-burn.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from a burn center registry (2015-2019).
• Excluded patients with short stays (<7 days) or out-of-state addresses.
• Geocoded patient addresses to calculate Area Deprivation Index (ADI) quintiles; unhoused patients were a separate group.
• Analyzed infection and resistant infection rates using univariate and multivariate analyses.

Main Results:

• Of 788 patients, 16.6% acquired infections, and 6.3% developed resistant infections.
• Age, burn severity (percent total body surface area burned), and diabetes were risk factors for infection.
• Area Deprivation Index (ADI) quintile was not associated with infection risk.
• Being unhoused independently predicted a higher risk of resistant infections (OR=3.37, p=0.027).

Conclusions:

• Area Deprivation Index (ADI) did not correlate with overall infection risk in burn patients.
• Unhoused burn patients face a significantly higher risk of developing resistant infections during their hospital stay.
• Targeted interventions for unhoused populations may be crucial for preventing resistant infections in burn care.