Management of burn injuries during pregnancy

Burns suffered during pregnancy is rare and can be a devastating injury. The presence of a fetus creates many special maternal physiological changes, and the burn wound places additional great stress on systems that are already highly modified. Most of the literature has come from developing countri...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Burns 2001-06, Vol.27 (4), p.394-397
Main Authors: Guo, Sydney S, Greenspoon, Jeffrey S, Kahn, Arthur M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Burns
Burns - therapy
Female
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Management
Medical sciences
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Complications - therapy
Pregnancy Outcome
Retrospective Studies
Traumas. Diseases due to physical agents
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Summary:Burns suffered during pregnancy is rare and can be a devastating injury. The presence of a fetus creates many special maternal physiological changes, and the burn wound places additional great stress on systems that are already highly modified. Most of the literature has come from developing countries, and most reports from developed countries have come before 1980 and do not reflect the current standard of care. We have compiled a retrospective review of eight patients burned during pregnancy. The total body surface area (TBSA) burned ranged from 1 to 85% in these patients, and all survived the injury. All patients gave birth to healthy children except the most severely burned patient, whose child suffers from cerebral palsy. Based on our experience as well as a review of the literature, management recommendations are proposed. These include: (1) early pregnancy test for all female patients of childbearing age, (2) prompt and aggressive fluid resuscitation, (3) early supplemental oxygen and low threshold for mechanical ventilatory support, (4) early delivery of the fetus if the pregnancy is in the third trimester, and (5) high suspicion for venous thrombosis and sepsis, with early and aggressive treatment.
ISSN:0305-4179
1879-1409
DOI:10.1016/S0305-4179(00)00128-5