Long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study

Background: Burns are a devastating injury that can cause physical and psychological issues. Limited data exist on long-term mental health (MH) after unintentional burns sustained during childhood. This study assessed long-term MH admissions after paediatric burns. Methods: This retrospective cohort...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Duke, J., Randall, Sean, Vetrichevvel, Thirthar P., McGarry, Sarah, Boyd, James, Rea, S., Wood, F.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd. 2018
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/71250
_version_ 1848762430112399360
author Duke, J.
Randall, Sean
Vetrichevvel, Thirthar P.
McGarry, Sarah
Boyd, James
Rea, S.
Wood, F.
author_facet Duke, J.
Randall, Sean
Vetrichevvel, Thirthar P.
McGarry, Sarah
Boyd, James
Rea, S.
Wood, F.
author_sort Duke, J.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Background: Burns are a devastating injury that can cause physical and psychological issues. Limited data exist on long-term mental health (MH) after unintentional burns sustained during childhood. This study assessed long-term MH admissions after paediatric burns. Methods: This retrospective cohort study included all children (<?18 years) hospitalised for a first burn (n?=?11,967) in Western Australia, 1980-2012, and a frequency matched uninjured comparison cohort (n?=?46,548). Linked hospital, MH and death data were examined. Multivariable negative binomial regression modelling was used to generate incidence rate ratios (IRR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: The burn cohort had a significantly higher adjusted rate of post-burn MH admissions compared to the uninjured cohort (IRR, 95% CI: 2.55, 2.07-3.15). Post-burn MH admission rates were twice as high for those younger than 5 years at index burn (IRR, 95% CI 2.06, 1.54-2.74), three times higher for those 5-9 years and 15-18 years (IRR, 95% CI: 3.21, 1.92-5.37 and 3.37, 2.13-5.33, respectively) and almost five times higher for those aged 10-14 (IRR, 95% CI: 4.90, 3.10-7.76), when compared with respective ages of uninjured children. The burn cohort had higher admission rates for mood and anxiety disorders (IRR, 95% CI: 2.79, 2.20-3.53), psychotic disorders (IRR, 95% CI: 2.82, 1.97-4.03) and mental and behavioural conditions relating to drug and alcohol abuse (IRR, 95% CI: 4.25, 3.39-5.32). Conclusions: Ongoing MH support is indicated for paediatric burn patients for a prolonged period after discharge to potentially prevent psychiatric morbidity and associated academic, social and psychological issues.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T10:47:26Z
format Journal Article
id curtin-20.500.11937-71250
institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T10:47:26Z
publishDate 2018
publisher Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd.
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling curtin-20.500.11937-712502019-04-08T04:27:22Z Long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study Duke, J. Randall, Sean Vetrichevvel, Thirthar P. McGarry, Sarah Boyd, James Rea, S. Wood, F. Background: Burns are a devastating injury that can cause physical and psychological issues. Limited data exist on long-term mental health (MH) after unintentional burns sustained during childhood. This study assessed long-term MH admissions after paediatric burns. Methods: This retrospective cohort study included all children (<?18 years) hospitalised for a first burn (n?=?11,967) in Western Australia, 1980-2012, and a frequency matched uninjured comparison cohort (n?=?46,548). Linked hospital, MH and death data were examined. Multivariable negative binomial regression modelling was used to generate incidence rate ratios (IRR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: The burn cohort had a significantly higher adjusted rate of post-burn MH admissions compared to the uninjured cohort (IRR, 95% CI: 2.55, 2.07-3.15). Post-burn MH admission rates were twice as high for those younger than 5 years at index burn (IRR, 95% CI 2.06, 1.54-2.74), three times higher for those 5-9 years and 15-18 years (IRR, 95% CI: 3.21, 1.92-5.37 and 3.37, 2.13-5.33, respectively) and almost five times higher for those aged 10-14 (IRR, 95% CI: 4.90, 3.10-7.76), when compared with respective ages of uninjured children. The burn cohort had higher admission rates for mood and anxiety disorders (IRR, 95% CI: 2.79, 2.20-3.53), psychotic disorders (IRR, 95% CI: 2.82, 1.97-4.03) and mental and behavioural conditions relating to drug and alcohol abuse (IRR, 95% CI: 4.25, 3.39-5.32). Conclusions: Ongoing MH support is indicated for paediatric burn patients for a prolonged period after discharge to potentially prevent psychiatric morbidity and associated academic, social and psychological issues. 2018 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/71250 10.1186/s41038-018-0134-z Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd. restricted
spellingShingle Duke, J.
Randall, Sean
Vetrichevvel, Thirthar P.
McGarry, Sarah
Boyd, James
Rea, S.
Wood, F.
Long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study
title Long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study
title_full Long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study
title_fullStr Long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study
title_full_unstemmed Long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study
title_short Long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study
title_sort long-term mental health outcomes after unintentional burns sustained during childhood: a retrospective cohort study
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/71250