Epidemiology of burns. The burn-prone patient
J. D. MacArthur and F. D. Moore
Predisposition to burning was identified by history, by conversation with
the family, or by physical examination. Factors that decreased the
patient's ability to respond appropriately were considered as predisposing.
A consecutive series of 155 hospitalized, burned, adult patients was
reviewed. Approximately 50 per cent of the entire series showed
predisposition to burning; among the more severe burns, this fraction was
57 percent. Among women, predisposition was more prominent in all
categories than among men. Among women, those predisposed to burning had
larger burns and a greater likelihood of dying. Alcoholism led the list of
predisposing factors, with senility, psychiatric disorders, and
neurological disease following in order. The patient's own home was usually
the site of the burn in those predisposed, with the initial ignition being
in the patient's hair or clothing, the mattress, bedclothes, or an
overstuffed chair. All of the burns occurring in hospital or mental
institution patients were among those predisposed to burning.
