Age differences in the severity and outcome of burns

This study concerns the relationship between age and injury in 1,297 patients with recent burns who were admitted variously to 73 hospitals. Older patients showed a significantly higher proportion of severe injuries than did middle-aged and younger groups. Even after adjusting for the severity of injury, the morbidity and mortality were higher in the over-65 group. These poorer results did not seem to be entirely accounted for by older age and greater severity of the burn. Surgical treatment such as debridement and grafting was used no more frequently in older patients than in younger ones, even though the greater severity of the burns would normally be expected to require more operations. The fact that older patients had more complications could have influenced physicians in their surgical decisions. Also, the attitude that the elderly are less able to tolerate surgical procedures may have played a role in the use of less aggressive treatment in relation to the severity of the burn.