Effects of hyperbaric oxygen therapy on clinical and economic outcomes in patients with deep second-degree burns.

Introduction: Deep second-degree burn injuries are the most challenging situations for the burn surgeon in the treatment of adult cases. While waiting for spontaneous closure increases the risk of hypertrophic scar and keloid, early excision and grafting pose the risk of donor site wound and permanent color differences. Unlike many studies in the literature, the current study was planned in a way to minimize factors other than burn wounds to investigate the effect of adding hyperbaric oxygen (HBO2) therapy to conventional treatment in deep second-degree burn wounds. Material and Methods: This prospective observational study included patients with burn injuries who underwent conventional treatment alone and those who underwent conventional plus HBO2 treatment performed by a single experienced surgeon and who met the study criteria. Results: Thirty-eight patients completed the study. Mean burned total body surface area (TBSA) was. 9.22 ± 3 43% (range 5% to 20%). There was no difference between the two groups in terms of age, burned TBSA, and burn etiology. The need for surgery and grafting was lower in patients who received HBO2 in addition to conventional treatment (p=0.003 and p=0.03, respectively). The patients in the HBO2 group had a shorter hospital stay, and their wounds epithelialized in a shorter time (p=0.169 and p≺0.001, respectively). They also had a higher satisfaction level and lower treatment cost (p=0.03 and p=0.36, respectively). Discussion: The results of this prospective study, in which co-factors were eliminated, showed that adding HBO2 to the conventional treatment of deep second-degree burns had a significant positive effect on patient outcomes, as well as reducing treatment costs.

Effect of Nutritional Support Containing Arginine, Glutamine and ß-hydroxy-ß-methylbutyrate on the Protein Balance in Patients with Major Burns.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of a supplementary nutritional product containing arginine, glutamine and ß-hydroxy-ß-methylbutyrate (HMB) on the nutritional parameters of patients with major burns. METHODS: In a total of 40 patients with major burns treated in the Burns Unit, standard nutritional support was administered to 20 patients, and the study product was added to the standard nutritional support of the remaining 20 patients. The biochemical laboratory test results and burn severity were recorded on the first day of treatment and on Days 14 and 28. The 40 patients were divided as the study and the control group, and their results were compared. RESULTS: An increase in the albumin, prealbumin and total protein values in the group administered with the study product was found to be statistically significant compared to the control group (p=0.021, p=0.02, p<0.001, respectively). The decreases in haemoglobin and C-reactive protein (CRP) were at the levels expected in burn trauma. CONCLUSION: The results obtained in this study demonstrated that the addition of arginine, glutamine and HMB to the nutrition of patients with burns had a positive effect on the protein balance.