The Total Number of Burn Injuries in a Scandinavian Population

Abstract

The treatment of burn injuries must be on two fronts. Within surgical treatment great advances have been made, and the next improvements must doubtless be made in the form of better prophylaxis.

There is an ample literature on this subject, but most analyses are based upon the study of in-patients, while little is known about the total frequency of burn injuries in a general population.

In the municipality of Copenhagen the treatment of burns has been centralized for 50 years, and the municipality comprises a well-defined geographical area with a population of 700,000 who must be considered representative of the whole of Denmark.

For social and insurance reasons even the slightest injuries are treated by doctors, and there is a possibility of recording all persons who have sought medical aid for burn injuries.

Burn injuries entail 8 deaths per annum, while 230 persons require admissions, 650 patients are treated in the out-patient department for burns and 1400 in other casualty wards, while the general practitioners treat 600 burn injuries every year.

Out of 85,000 annual injuries, burns make up 2.7%, and a total of 2900 persons, or 0.4% of the population, seek medical aid for burn injuries every year.

Two-thirds of the burn injuries occur in the homes and one-third in the workplaces. 23% of the victims are children under 5 years of age, in spite of the fact that children of this age make up only 6% of the population. 10% are school children and 60% are adults. In the age range over 60 only 6% sustain burn injuries, although this age group constitutes 21% of the Copenhagen population.

The causes of the various burn injuries are analysed. 55% are scalds, 21% are fire burns, 16% are contact burns, and 2% electricity accidents. Corrosions are found in 6%.

The prevention applies particularly to young children who should not be allowed to play in the kitchen or washing place. The accidents in workplaces can hardly be reduced. After conversion of the present figures to apply per 1 million of the population, they are compared with the findings of previous authors whose materials are characterized by being derived from in-patients and thus include a larger number of children and a larger number of burns caused by fire. Our material includes only a few children whose clothes have caught fire; most of these cases are due to playing with matches.