Dr Lincoln Tracy¹, Ms Yvonne Singer², Ms Rebecca Schrale³, Ms Jennifer Gong¹, Professor Fiona Wood⁴, Ms Anne Darton⁵, A/Prof Dale Edgar^6,7, Rochelle Kurmis⁸, Miss Heather Cleland², Professor Belinda Gabbe^1,9

¹School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia, ²Victorian Adult Burns Service, The Alfred, Melbourne, Australia, ³Tasmanian Burns Unit, Royal Hobart Hospital, Hobart, Australia, ⁴Burn Injury Research Unit, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia, ⁵NSW Agency for Clinical Innovation Statewide Burn Injury Service Network, St Leonards, Australia, ⁶State Adult Burn Unit, Fiona Stanley Hospital, Murdoch, Australia, ⁷Burn Injury Research Node, The University of Notre Dame, Fremantle, Australia, ⁸Adult Burns Service, Royal Adelaide Hospital, Adelaide, Australia, ⁹Heath Data Research UK Institute, Swansea University Medical School, Swansea, Wales

Abstract:

Introduction: Burn injuries affect people of all ages, but less research has focused on burns in older adults. This is an important area given the projected increases in the proportion of older adults in our region over the next 30 years. This study aimed to provide information about the characteristics and surgical management of older adult burns patients in Australian and New Zealand.

Methods: Data from adult admissions (≥ 18 years) collected from burn centres across Australia and New Zealand between July 2009 and December 2018 were extracted from the Burns Registry of Australia and New Zealand. Admissions were stratified based on their age: young adult (18-34 years), middle age (35-64 years), and older adult (65+ years).

Results: There were 17,829 admissions over the study period, with 2,398 (13%) aged ≥ 65 years. Compared to young/middle aged adults, a larger portion of older adults were female (38%), and received a scald (41%). Median total body surface area (%TBSA) did not differ between age groups (3% for all groups), but a larger proportion of older adults had deeper burns (63%). A larger proportion of older adults (26%) underwent multiple debridement procedures compared to young/middle aged adults (24%).

Discussion & Conclusion: Older adults with a burn injury sustained their burn in different ways and settings compared to young/middle aged adults and received different surgical management. The findings from this study can be used to improve planning and care processes in older burn injured patients.

Biography:

Dr Lincoln Tracy is a Research Fellow in the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at Monash University, working on the Burns Registry of Australia and New Zealand.