title: Age as a risk factor for burn injury requiring hospitalization during early childhood.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the variation by age in the rates and causes of burn injury requiring hospitalization during early childhood.
  
  
  METHODS
  Hospital discharge data and a burn unit admission log were used to identify all children in the Denver (Colo) metropolitan area younger than 5 years who sustained burn injuries and were hospitalized in 1989 and 1990. Patients' medical records were reviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred twenty-two children were identified with burn injuries that required hospitalization, an annual incidence of 40.5 per 100,000 children younger than 5 years. Children aged 6 months through 2 years accounted for 88% of all cases and were seven times more likely to be hospitalized for a burn injury than were children outside this age range. Scalding and contact with hot objects accounted for 64% and 20% of cases, respectively, and occurred primarily in the 6-month through 2-year age group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings underscore the importance of developmental stage as a determinant of risk and type of burn injury. Children aged 6 months through 2 years are at increased risk of severe burn injury and should be targeted for prevention efforts.
authors.affiliation: Division of Field Epidemiology, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Ga.
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Simon
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Baron
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D002056:Burns / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003120:Colorado / Q000453:epidemiology; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D012307:Risk Factors