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Excerpt
BACKGROUND: Of the children transported to hospitals by paramedics/EMTs each year, on average 2–3% are transported for fire/burns injuries. Less than 10% of these injuries are due to flame/fire burns. The remainder are due to scalds/hot object burns. This high proportion of scalds/hot object in juries prompted further investigation.
METHODS: Two fiscal years of the San Diego County Emergency Medical Services Pre-hospital data were queried to determine the nature and extent of burn injuries for 0–4 year olds. Primary causes included fire/flames and scalds/hot objects.
RESULTS: Out of 74 valid cases, 54% were cooking/hot food item related (26 were hot coffee/tea/soup /bean spills, 21 of which the child pulled or grabbed and 14 were other cooking related); 10.8% electrical burns; 10.8% bath water burns; 5.4% iron burns; 4% campfire/fireplace burns; 4% unknown cause; 2.7% related to building fires; 2.7% chemical burns and 5.5% other. The majority of the victims were male (65%), 1 to 2 years old (47%), and White (28%) or Hispanic (26%).
CONCLUSION: These injuries underscore the hazard scalds pose to young children, especially in the home environment. Approximately 30% of these burn cases involved children pulling/grabbing hot beverages. This emphasizes the need for educational information targeting parents and caregivers regarding the safety hazards posed by handling hot items in the presence of young children.
