Cutaneous functional units prediction in outcomes of early and intensive splinting following palmar burn injury in young children: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Palmar burn injuries are common in young children and can result in contracture. METHODS: A prospective longitudinal study describes outcomes of palm and digit extension splint use following burn in 75 children (83 hands) aged < 5 years and determines whether specific cutaneous functional units (CFUs) are associated with early signs of contracture (ESC). Outcomes were assessed up to 9-18 months following burn. Routine clinical data was collected at therapy reviews. RESULTS: Children were splinted > 12 h/day for a mean of 158 days following burn. The mean time to splint cessation was 264 days following burn. Fourteen hands developed ESC (17%): 12 hands had full ROM restored following conservative management, 2 hands (3%) progressed to contracture. Hands that developed ESC had greater healing time (p = 0.002), greater number of CFUs affected (p < 0.001), and greater number of immediate first webspace and extended first webspace CFUs affected (p = 0.002, p < 0.001 respectively). ESC risk increases for each day to heal (odds ratio [OR] 1.1, 95% CI 1.0-1.2) and each CFU in extended first webspace (OR 2.8, 95% CI 1.5-5.0). CONCLUSION: Early and intensive splinting following palmar burn results in excellent ROM. Burns involving more CFUs or the first webspace are associated with ESC.

Parent perspective of an intensive splinting intervention following palmar burn injury in young children.

BACKGROUND: Parents may experience challenges implementing their child's therapeutic treatment following burn. METHODS: A mixed methods study was conducted to explore the parent experience of intensive splinting following palmar burns in young children (median age 16 months [IQR 14]). Thirteen parents were interviewed after cessation of their child's splinting (mean 12 months [SD 2] following burn). Parent interviews were semi-structured with open-ended questions and conducted one-to-one. Inductive thematic analysis was completed by two researchers with consensus achieved through discussion and agreement from third researcher. Themes were triangulated with quantitative data, including range of motion (ROM), scar, developmental and quality of life outcomes. RESULTS: Children used the splint intensively (>12-24 h/day) for median 179 days (IQR 74) with all splinting ceased by median 275 days (IQR 105). All children had full ROM at scar maturation. Thematic analysis revealed two main themes: parents perceive the impact of splinting to be greater on them than their child and parents perceive outcomes to be more important than burden. Parents described the importance of routine and therapeutic relationships in ongoing engagement with intervention. CONCLUSION: Parents consider intensive splinting to impact them more than their child with burden of care manageable considering overall outcomes.

Reliability, Validity, and Predictive Validity of Cutaneous Functional Units Predicted to Scar Following Palmar Burn Injury in Young Children.

Identification of children at risk of palmar burn scar is important for early initiation of scar management. This study determined the interrater reliability of face-to-face and photographic assessments of 29 palmar cutaneous functional units (CFUs) predicted to scar following palmar burn. The validity of photographic compared to face-to-face assessment, and the predictive validity of both assessment types to identify scarring at 3 to 6 months following burn, was also established. Thirty-nine children (40 hands) post burn injury were assessed face-to-face in the clinical setting, following healing of their palmar burn, by three burn therapists. Photographs of the children's hands at initial assessment were assessed by the same therapists a minimum of 6 months later. To determine which CFUs scarred, children were reassessed face-to-face in the clinical setting 3 to 6 months following their burn. For analysis, 29 CFUs were merged into eight separate groups to determine the number of CFUs predicted to scar per CFU group for face-to-face and photographic assessments. The range of agreement for individual CFUs within CFU groups was also calculated for both assessment types. Excellent interrater reliability was established for face-to-face assessment in all eight CFU groups (ICC2,1 0.83-0.96). Photographic assessment demonstrated good to excellent interrater reliability in six CFU groups (ICC2,1 0.69-0.90) and validity in seven CFU groups (ICC2,1 0.66-0.87). Good to excellent predictive validity was established for both assessment types in seven CFU groups (face-to-face ICC2,1 0.60-0.95, photographic ICC2,1 0.69-0.89). Experienced therapists can reliably assess CFUs face-to-face or via photographs and predict future scar development.

Reliability of a novel technique to assess palmar contracture in young children with unilateral hand injuries.

BACKGROUND: Palmar contracture in young children can have significant developmental consequences. Despite this, objective techniques to measure palmar range of movement and quantify contracture in young children are limited. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of hand span and hand length measures in young children and to establish whether there is any association with age, sex and presence of a palmar burn injury in the reliability of these measures. The study also sought to determine the normative difference and establish a cut off value for the between-hand difference to identify loss of movement in 1 hand. STUDY DESIGN: Cross sectional METHODS: Forty-four children aged 0 to <5 years were recruited. Twenty-two children had a unilateral palmar burn injury and 22 did not have a palmar burn injury. Each child's hand span and hand length were measured 3 times. This was performed twice by the first assessor and once by the second assessor. Intraclass correlation coefficients were calculated to determine the intra-rater and inter-rater reliability. The largest of the 3 values for both hand span and hand length from the first assessor's first assessment were used to determine the normative between-hand difference. Outliers were removed prior to determining the normative difference. Children were considered outliers if their between-hand difference in hand span and/or hand length was in the top 5% of values. RESULTS: Excellent reliability was established for hand span and hand length measures for the whole group (intra-rater ICC2,1 ≥0.95, inter-rater ICC2,1 ≥0.94). The mean normative between-hand difference for both measures was 2 mm. The cut-off for the normative difference in hand span was <9 mm and hand length was <6 mm. CONCLUSION: This measurement technique has excellent reliability and could be a useful method to quantify palmar range of movement and identify contracture in young children with unilateral hand injuries.

Outcomes of Early and Intensive Use of a Palm and Digit Extension Orthosis in Young Children After Burn Injury.

Burns to the palmar aspect of the hand are prevalent in young children. The development of scar tissue across the flexor surface of the hand combined with the years of growth ahead may result in considerable complications. This study was undertaken to describe outcomes of early and intensive use of a palm and digit extension orthosis with the elbow immobilized at 90° flexion following a palmar hand burn. A retrospective review of 107 children (mean age 18 months [SD 10]) treated at a statewide Pediatric Burns Unit from 2012 to 2016 was performed. Three children (3%) developed contracture during the 24-month study follow-up period. The other 104 children (97%) had full ROM at 24 months or at either the point of discharge or loss to follow-up. Early signs of contracture, defined as loss of full movement or significant banding, developed in 26 children (24%) in the first 9 months after burn. With intensive physiotherapy, 23 children regained full movement by 12 months after burn. Children who did not achieve complete wound healing at 1 month after burn and children with hypertrophic scarring at 2 months after burn were significantly more represented among cases of early signs of contracture (P = .013). When undertaken with regular clinical review, early and intensive use of a palm and digit extension orthosis can maintain full extension of the palm and digits in children after palmar burn.

Outcomes of Early Use of an End of Range Axilla Orthotic in Children Following Burn Injury.

Scar contracture is a significant complication of burn injury. This study aimed to describe outcomes of early axilla orthotic use at end of range abduction in children, following a burn to the axilla region. A retrospective review of 76 children (mean age 3.9 years [SD 3.6]) treated at a tertiary children's hospital from 2006 to 2016 was conducted. No child developed axilla contracture for the duration of the 2-year study follow-up with no adverse events recorded. If orthotic use was ceased <60 days post-burn, it was considered not an essential intervention to maintain range of movement, leaving 49 children using the orthotic ≥60 days. Compared with the children who ceased orthotic use in <60 days, children who required the orthotic ≥60 days had a significantly higher frequency of deep-dermal burn (59 vs 25%, p = .01), flame mechanism (25 vs 5%, p = .03), and burn injury distribution involving the anterior trunk, flank, and arm (18 vs 3%, p = .03). Early signs of contracture, considered loss of full axilla range or significant banding, developed in nine children within 3 months post-burn. With intensive therapy, all returned to full axilla range by 9 months post-burn. Children with skin tension at end of range shoulder movement at the 1-month clinical assessment were 11 times more likely to develop early signs of contracture (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.9-62.1, p = .007). Intensive orthotic use at end of range shoulder abduction in children with axilla burns is well tolerated. When undertaken with ongoing therapist review, full axilla range can be maintained.