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Updated: Jun 19, 2026
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Severe Burn Injury in a Swine Model for Clinical Dressing Assessment
Published on: November 6, 2018
Association Between Cutaneous Functional Units and Impairment Ratings After Burn Injury
Maya F Andrade1, Jenna Kelly2, Rupak Mukherjee3
1College of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States.
Summary
Cutaneous functional units (CFUs) may better assess burn injury impairment than total body surface area (TBSA). Scar CFUs showed the strongest association with final impairment ratings, suggesting their clinical relevance for burn patients.
Area of Science:
- Burn injury research
- Functional impairment assessment
- Medical evaluation
Background:
- Burn injuries often result in long-term functional deficits requiring formal impairment ratings for compensation.
- Current impairment guidelines primarily use total body surface area (TBSA), potentially underestimating functional impact.
- Cutaneous functional units (CFUs) offer a more localized assessment of skin function related to joint movement.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the relationship between initial TBSA, initial CFUs, final scar CFUs, and impairment ratings in burn patients.
- To test the hypothesis that scar burden, measured by CFUs, is strongly associated with functional impairment.
- To determine if CFUs provide a more accurate measure of impairment compared to TBSA.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of 78 burn patients at The South Carolina Burn Center.
- Photographic documentation of initial TBSA and whole-body impairment ratings at maximum medical improvement.
- Calculation of initial CFUs from injury photos and scar CFUs from scar photos at impairment rating.
Main Results:
- Initial TBSA correlated significantly with both initial CFUs (rho = 0.471) and scar CFUs (rho = 0.541).
- Initial TBSA was also significantly correlated with impairment ratings (rho = 0.418).
- Scar CFUs demonstrated the strongest association with impairment ratings (rho = 0.569), surpassing initial CFUs (rho = 0.307).
Conclusions:
- Scar CFUs appear to be a clinically relevant measure of functional impairment following burn injuries.
- The findings suggest that scar CFUs may offer a more precise assessment than traditional TBSA measurements.
- Further prospective studies are warranted to validate the utility of scar CFUs in impairment evaluations.
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