HEALTH RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE AFTER BURNS: ARE WE REALLY TREATING BURNS?
Abstract
Background: During the last few decades management of burns has undergone positive revolutionarychange. Today, over 50% of all patients with burns involving 80% of their total body-surface area cansurvive. Although the objective assessment by attending physician can well define a patient’s degree ofhealth, the patient’s subjective perceptions and expectations that can influence burn survivors’experience of their life is much more important. Methods: Adult burn patients of both sexes admittedto burn unit with major burns either by size or site who required reconstruction for burn injury were thesubjects of this study. The health related quality of life was assessed using SF-36v2®, questionnaire.Results: The mild to moderate pain complaint by 87 (88%) of all burn survivors, badly impact rolephysical and general health with resultant decrease in physical component summary. What was moredifficult to explain was the decreased mental health which is evident soon after the incidence andpersisted throughout the period of follow-up, showing statistically insignificant improvement whencompared from basal score (p=0.008). Longitudinal decline in HRQoL had strong relationship withfemale sex, involvement of prime area, hospital admissions, hospital stay and sessions of surgery. Sex,occupation, involvement of prime area and hospital admissions, were the important predictors fordecrease in physical component summary of burn survivors. Involvement of prime area and hospitaladmissions were important determinant for decrease in mental component summary. Conclusion: Thelevel and quality of multidisciplinary rehabilitation that these victims needs is very low as compared todeveloped countries. These patients need long term professional, psychological, and social support.Keywords: Quality of Life, Burn Survivors, Health related Quality of Life, subjective healthReferences
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