title: Camphor burns of the palm and non-suicidal self-injury: An uncommonly reported, but socially relevant issue.
abstract: Camphor is a waxy white sublimating chemical derived from natural as well as synthetic sources and widely used in various communities worldwide for a number of medicinal, culinary, and religious reasons. Camphor is burnt as an offering to God in many religious communities. We report three incidences of self inflicted injury from burning camphor on the palm resulting in full thickness burns. Non-suicidal self-injury is socially unacceptable destruction or alteration of body tissue when there is no suicidal intent or pervasive developmental disorder and we have explored an association between this and burn injury. This report also highlights the unique social and cultural pattern of this burn injury and the importance of psycho-therapeautic help for these victims.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, Super Speciality Block, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India.
authors.forename: Ravi Kumar
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Chittoria
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, Super Speciality Block, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India.
authors.forename: Devi Prasad
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Mohapatra
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, Super Speciality Block, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India.
authors.forename: Meethale Thiruvoth
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Friji
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, Super Speciality Block, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India.
authors.forename: S Dinesh
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, Super Speciality Block, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India.
authors.forename: Arjun
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Asokan
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, Super Speciality Block, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India.
authors.forename: Sandhya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pandey
keywords: Camphor burns; full thickness burns; hand burns; non-suicidal self-injury; self-inflicted violence