Outcomes of Older Adults with Burn Injury: University Clinical Center of Kosovo.
BACKGROUND
Advances in burn care over the past 50 years have brought about remarkable improvement in mortality rates such that survival has become an expected outcome even in patients with extensive injuries. Although these improvements have occurred in all age groups, survival in older adults still lags far behind that in younger cohorts. This study determines the outcomes of older adults with burn injury in University Clinical Center of Kosovo.


METHODS
This is a retrospective study that includes 56 burn patients, older than 60 years who were admitted at the Department of Plastic Surgery, between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2013. Data processing was done with the statistical package of Stat 3. From the statistical parameters the structural index, arithmetic median, and standard deviation were calculated.


RESULTS
Fifty six burned patient older than 60 years were included during a 10-year period. Of the 56 elderly patients 29 were women and 27 were men with a mean age of 66.7 years (range, 60-85 years). The differences were not statistically significant for both genders regarding the causes of burn injury.


CONCLUSIONS
Considering the gradual increase of the elderly population in our country based on the data of the Ministry of Public Services, an increase is expected to the incidence of burn injuries in the population of this category of our country.
University Clinical Center of Kosovo, Department of Plastic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prishtina, Rrethi i spitalit p.n. 10000, Kosovo;
Shkelzen
S
B Duci
University Clinical Center of Kosovo, Department of Plastic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prishtina, Rrethi i spitalit p.n. 10000, Kosovo;
Hysni
H
M Arifi
University Clinical Center of Kosovo, Department of Pediatric Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prishtina, Rrethi i spitalit p.n. 10000, Kosovo;
Hasan
H
R Ahmeti
University Clinical Center of Kosovo, Department of Plastic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prishtina, Rrethi i spitalit p.n. 10000, Kosovo;
Violeta
V
K Zatriqi
University Clinical Center of Kosovo, Department of Plastic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prishtina, Rrethi i spitalit p.n. 10000, Kosovo;
Zejn
Z
A Buja
University Clinical Center of Kosovo, Department of Plastic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prishtina, Rrethi i spitalit p.n. 10000, Kosovo;
Enver
E
T Hoxha
University Clinical Center of Kosovo, Department of Neurosurgery, Faculty of Medicine, Prishtina, Rrethi i spitalit p.n. 10000, Kosovo.
Agon
A
Y Mekaj
Adults; Burns; Kosovo; Old