The Practice of First Aid for Burn Injuries Among the Population of East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia for 2012-2016

Assessing the Knowledge and Practices of Burn First Aid in Al-Baha Region, Saudi Arabia

Background Burns are a prevalent type of injury that can result in substantial morbidity and mortality. Burn first aid knowledge is essential for reducing its complications and improving outcomes. However, evidence of the amount of burn first aid knowledge among the general population in many nations is sparse. Methodology A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 346 persons over the age of 18 from the Al-Baha region of Saudi Arabia. The participants' knowledge of first aid for burns, including the appropriate steps to take in the event of a burn, the types of burns, and the proper application of burn dressings was assessed using a structured questionnaire. Results The majority of participants (73.6%) had inadequate knowledge of first aid for burns, while only 26.4% had adequate knowledge. The most common misconception among participants was the use of toothpaste, honey, or ice for burn treatment, which is not recommended. Additionally, hot water was the main cause of burning in this study. Conclusions This study underscores the necessity for targeted education and awareness-raising activities to improve the general population's knowledge and habits about first aid for burns. Such programs can be tailored to clarify myths and misunderstandings regarding burn treatment and encourage evidence-based strategies for preventing and treating burns.

Duration of cooling with water for thermal burns as a first aid intervention: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

Cooling thermal burns with running water is a recommended first aid intervention. However, guidance on the ideal duration of cooling remains controversial and inconsistent across organisations.

AIM

To perform a systematic review of the evidence for the question; Among adults and children with thermal burn, does active cooling using running water as an immediate first aid intervention for 20 min or more, compared with active cooling using running water for any other duration, change the outcomes of burn size, burn depth, pain, adverse outcome (hypothermia) or complications?

METHOD

We searched Medline, Embase, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and used ROBINS-I to assess for risk of bias. We used Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation methodology for determining the certainty of evidence. We included all studies that compared the selected outcomes of the duration of cooling of thermal burns with water in all patient ages. (PROSPERO registration number: CRD42021180665). From 560 screened references, we included four observational studies. In these studies, 48% of burns were cooled for 20 min or more. We found no benefit for a duration of 20 min or more of cooling when compared with less than 20 min of cooling for the outcomes of size and depth of burn, re-epithelialization, or skin grafting. The evidence is of very low certainty owing to limitations in study design, risk of bias and indirectness.

CONCLUSION

The optimal duration of cooling for thermal burns remains unknown and future prospective research is indicated to better define this treatment recommendation.

Poorer first aid after burn is associated with remoteness in Australia: Where to from here?

OBJECTIVE

Early intervention with appropriate first aid following burn injury improves clinical outcomes. Previous evidence suggests geographic remoteness may be a barrier to receiving appropriate burns first aid. This study investigated the prevalence of gold standard first aid in patients managed in Australian burn services and whether geographic remoteness was associated with receiving gold standard first aid.

DESIGN

Registry-based cohort study.

SETTING

Binational clinical quality registry.

PARTICIPANTS

Burn-injured patients admitted to a specialist Australian burn service.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Receiving gold standard first aid following a burn injury.

RESULTS

Approximately two-thirds of patients received gold standard first aid. Patients whose burns were sustained in very remote regions had a greater risk of receiving no first aid, compared to gold standard first aid, relative to patients who sustained their burn injuries in major cities.

CONCLUSIONS

Nearly two-thirds of patients received gold standard burns first aid following injury. However, patients who were injured in the most remote regions of Australia were at an increased risk of not receiving gold standard first aid treatment within 3 hours of injury. Further examination of factors contributing to poorer first aid standards in remote areas is required.