Clinical Assessment of Burns in Norway

Accordance of Clinical Assessment of Burn Depth and %TBSA Between Referring Hospitals and the National Norwegian Burn Centre

Clinical assessment of burn depth and area can be challenging even for experienced surgeons. Still, the assessment is fundamental for the treatment, as it determines the fluid treatment and indication for escharotomy and need for referral to a burn centre.There are few studies comparing the initial evaluation of burn depth and surface with that of a specialist burn centre. The aim of this study was to make such a comparison for a cohort of patients admitted to a specialist burn centre during one year.The cohort was defined as patients transferred to the burn unit at Haukeland university hospital during 2014.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Burns
• Intervention / Treatment: Procedure: Clinical assessment

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 100

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Ragnvald L Brekke, MD; Phone Number: +4740874208; Email: ragnvald.ljones.brekke@helse-bergen.no

Study Locations

• Norway
  • Vestland
    • Bergen, Vestland, Norway, 5021
      • Recruiting
      • Haukeland University Hospital
      • Contact: Ragnvald L Brekke, MD; Phone Number: +47 40874208; Email: ragnvald.ljones.brekke@helse-bergen.no

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The cohort was defined as patients transferred to the burn unit at Haukeland university hospital during 2014.The incidence of burns in Norway is 15.5 /100 000/ year (pop.

5.2 mill), and 70-100 patients a year is treated at the national burn centre. The

Australian and New Zealand Burn Association (ANZBA) referral criteria are used:

• Burns > 10% Total Body Surface Area (TBSA)
• Burns > 5% TBSA in children
• Full Thickness burns > 5% TBSA
• Burns of Special Areas - Face, Hands, Feet, Genitalia, Perineum, Major Joints and circumferential limb or chest burns
• Burns with inhalation injury
• Electrical burns
• Chemical burns
• Burns with pre-existing illness
• Burns associated with major trauma
• Burns at the extremes of age - young children and the elderly
• Burn injury in pregnant women
• Non-accidental burns

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients transferred to the burn unit at Haukeland university hospital during 2014

Exclusion Criteria:

• Readmissions
• Patients transported to Haukeland directly from the site of the accident

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Observational Models: Cohort
• Time Perspectives: Retrospective

Number of groups / cohorts

2

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Referring hospital; Burn assessments performed in referring hospitals	Procedure: Clinical assessment; Clinical assessment of burn depth and the percentage of total body surface area (TBSA) burnt with any method
Burn centre; Burn assessments performed in the national burn centre	Procedure: Clinical assessment; Clinical assessment of burn depth and the percentage of total body surface area (TBSA) burnt with any method

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Burn depth	Burn depth measured with any described clinical method.Clinical assessment of depth is a subjective evaluation based on visual and tactile characteristics, that is, wound appearance, capillary refill and wound sensibility to touch and pin prick.	1 year
The percentage of total body surface area (TBSA) burnt	TBSA measured with any described clinical method, for example, Wallace's Rule of Nines, Lund and Browder charts, and Palmar Surface Measurement ('rule of palm')	1 year

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Haukeland University Hospital
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Ragnvald L Brekke, MD, Haukeland University Hospital

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 1, 2018
• Primary Completion (Anticipated): December 31, 2022
• Study Completion (Anticipated): June 30, 2023

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 25, 2020
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 25, 2020
• First Posted (Actual): August 28, 2020

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 21, 2022
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 18, 2022
• Last Verified: March 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: clinical assessment; TBSA; national burn centre
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Wounds and Injuries; Burns
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2014/1627, Rek-Vest

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: No

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No