Abstract | December 20, 2021

The Battle of the Titans – Comparing Resuscitation Between 5 Major Burn Centers Using the Burn Navigator

Presenting Author: Julie Rizzo, MD, United States Army Institute of Surgical Research|Fort Sam Houston|Texas

Co-Authors: Nehemiah Liu/MS|Research Scientist/Research Directorate|USAISR/Fort Sam Houston, TX Maria Serio-Melvin/MSN|Chief Clinical Research Support Branch/Research Directorate|USAISR/Fort Sam Houston, TX Elsa Coates/MSN|Clinical Research Coordinator/Research Directorate|USAISR/Fort Sam Houston, TX Kevin N. Foster/MD|Chief/Burn Center|Arizona Burn Center Valleywise Health/Phoenix AZ Kareem R. AbdelFattah/MD|Burn Trauma Surgeon/Department of Surgery|UTSouthwestern Medical Center/Dallas TX Tam N. Pham/MD|Director/Burn Center|Harborview Regional Burn Center/Seattle WA Jose Salinas/PhD|Scientific Lead/Research Directorate|USAISR/Fort Sam Houston, TX

Learning Objectives

  1. Describe the use of the Burn Navigator as a decision-support tool in burn resuscitation at 5 major burn centers in the U.S.A.
  2. Examine the differences in demographics and burn characteristics of patients presents to 5 major burn centers in the U.S.A.

Introduction:
The goal of burn resuscitation is to provide the least amount of fluid necessary to maintain end-organ perfusion and prevent burn shock. The objective of this analysis was to examine how the Burn Navigator (BN), a clinical decision support tool in burn resuscitation, was utilized across 5 major burn centers in the United States.

Methods:
A non-interventional, observational trial of 300 adult patients with embedded prospective and retrospective components was undertaken to examine the effectiveness of the BN in burn resuscitation. 5 ABA-verified burn centers enrolled patients. Data examining patient demographics, burn characteristics, fluid volumes, and resuscitation-related complications were examined. Statistical analysis compared the 5 sites in terms of these variables.

Results:
285 patients were eligible for analysis. There was no difference among the centers in terms of average age (45.5 + 16.8 years), BMI (29.2 + 6.9), ISS (21.2 + 12.8), or median TBSA (34 [25.8, 47]). Primary crystalloid infusion volumes at 24 hours differed significantly when measured in ml/kg/TBSA (median 3.7 [2.9, 8.8], range 1.3 to 12.3). Similarly, total fluids, which includes colloid adjuncts, drip medications and enteral fluids, differed between groups when measured in both ml/kg (median 149.8 [106.5, 224.1], range 38.4 to 536.2) and ml/kg/TBSA (4.2 [3.3, 5.5], 1.7 to 15.3) at 24 hours. Post-hoc adjustment for pairwise comparisons resulted in a loss of significance between most of the sites. There were 156 resuscitation-related complications reported across the 5 sites with an average incidence of 44.4 % incidence.

Conclusion:
The Burn Navigator appeared to standardize fluid resuscitations across 5 major US burn centers. With primary fluid volumes near the Parkland formula, the device can be utilized effectively in burn centers, and further study should examine the utility of this device in facilities that do not commonly treat burn injuries, as well as on the battlefield.

Posted in: Burn Medicine101