Kauvar David S, Baer David G
United States Army Institute of Surgical Research, Fort Sam Houston, Texas 78234, USA.
J Burn Care Res. 2009 Jul-Aug;30(4):700-4. doi: 10.1097/BCR.0b013e3181ac0190.
The burning of waste is a common cause of accidental injury on the battlefield. This study was devised to determine the incidence of burns incurred while burning waste during U.S. military operations prior to and following an intervention targeted at reducing such injuries. The intervention consisted of memoranda outlining potential dangers and suggesting improved safety procedures. It was distributed to the combat theater (Iraq and Afghanistan) in March 2004. We reviewed military burn center records from March 2003 to March 2005. Demographics, injury data, and outcomes were recorded and compared between those casualties injured prior to and following the initiative. Twenty-four patients were injured while burning waste, 10% of military casualties admitted to the burn center during the study period. From March 2003 to March 2004, 20 patients were admitted with such injuries. The incidence of 1.67 per month was significantly (P<.05) higher than that seen the year after the intervention (four patients, 0.33 per month). TBSA burned was not different between the two time periods (9.8+/-8% before vs 6.3+/-7% after, P=.43). There were no deaths, and only one patient had an associated nonburn injury. Only 54% of patients returned to military duty. The initiative was followed by a significant decrease in the incidence of waste-burning injuries. We conclude that the initiative was successful and highlights the importance of continued military burn surveillance and prevention efforts.
焚烧垃圾是战场上意外伤害的常见原因。本研究旨在确定在一项旨在减少此类伤害的干预措施实施前后，美国军事行动中焚烧垃圾时所导致烧伤的发生率。该干预措施包括概述潜在危险并建议改进安全程序的备忘录。它于2004年3月分发给作战区域（伊拉克和阿富汗）。我们回顾了2003年3月至2005年3月军事烧伤中心的记录。记录了人口统计学、损伤数据和结果，并对该倡议实施前后受伤的伤亡人员进行了比较。24名患者在焚烧垃圾时受伤，占研究期间入住烧伤中心的军事伤亡人员的10%。2003年3月至2004年3月，有20名此类受伤患者入院。每月1.67例的发生率显著高于干预措施实施后的第二年（4例患者，每月0.33例）（P<0.05）。两个时间段的烧伤总面积无差异（干预前为9.8±8%，干预后为6.3±7%，P = 0.43）。无死亡病例，只有1名患者伴有非烧伤损伤。只有54%的患者重返军事岗位。该倡议实施后，焚烧垃圾导致的受伤发生率显著下降。我们得出结论，该倡议是成功的，并突出了持续进行军事烧伤监测和预防工作的重要性。
