Effectiveness of prophylactic antibiotics in the outpatient treatment of burns.
We compared wound infection rates in 133 outpatient burns treated with prophylactic antibiotics in our emergency room and 161 similar, untreated burns. Infection rates in the treated and untreated groups were 3.8% (5/133) and 3.1% (5/161), respectively. Since this was an observational cohort study, it was necessary to demonstrate the comparability of treated and untreated groups with respect to risk factors for infection, including patient age, size, location, and etiology of the burn injury, time since injury, and presence of co-morbidity. The groups were found to be comparable for all risk factors except size of burn: larger burns were over-represented in the treated group (p less than 0.05). Even after controlling for size, antibiotic use did not lower the infection rate. These results argue strongly against routine use of systemic antibiotics in the treatment of outpatient burns.
D000287:Administration, Topical; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002056:Burns / Q000145:classification / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008875:Middle Aged; D010045:Outpatients; D011292:Premedication; D012306:Risk; D014946:Wound Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents