Abstract
BACKGROUNDPrevious studies have debated the optimal time to perform excision and grafting of second- and third-degree burns. The current consensus is that excision should be performed before the sixth hospital day. We hypothesize that patients who undergo excision within 48 hours have better outcomes. METHODSThe ACS Trauma Quality Programs (ACS TQP) dataset was used to identify all patients with at least 10% total body surface area (TBSA) second- and third-degree burns from years 2017-2019. Patients with other serious injuries (any AIS >3), severe inhalational injury, pre-hospital cardiac arrest, and interhospital transfers were excluded. ICD-10 procedure codes were used to ascertain time of first excision. Patients who underwent first excision within 48 hours of admission (early excision) were compared to those who underwent surgery 48-120 hours from admission (standard therapy). Propensity score matching was performed to control for age and TBSA burned. RESULTS2,270 patients (72% male) were included in the analysis. Median age was 37 (23-55) years. Early excision was associated with shorter hospital length of stay (LOS), and ICU LOS (Table 2). Complications including deep venous thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, ventilator-associated pneumonia, and catheter-associated urinary tract infection were significantly lower with early excision. There was no significant difference in mortality. CONCLUSIONSPerformance of excision within 48 hours is associated with shorter hospital LOS and fewer complications than standard therapy. We recommend taking patients for operative debridement and temporary or, when feasible, permanent coverage within 48 hours. Prospective trials should be performed to verify the advantages of this treatment strategy. LEVEL OF EVIDENCELevel III - Retrospective Cohort Study.
