title: Surgical and psychiatric profile of patients who self-harm by burning in a regional burn unit over an 11-year period.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patients admitted to hospital for deliberate self-harm by burning (DSHB) provide a challenge for medical, surgical and psychological management. We retrospectively reviewed all the patients admitted to a Scottish regional burn unit with DSHB over an 11-year period to assess demographics and outcome.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ward admission data were used to identify DSHB patients admitted to the South East Scotland regional burn unit in Livingston, UK between 2002 and 2012, as well as a control group of accidental burn patients. Data were extracted concerning burn injury, psychiatric history and inpatient management.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 53 DSHB patients with 58 attendances over the 11-year period were compared to 49 accidental burns patients. Compared to controls, DSHB patients were more likely to be unemployed, live alone and have a previous psychiatric diagnosis (p < 0.01). DSHB patients had more severe burns, a longer hospital stay and were more likely to undergo surgery (p < 0.01). DSHB patients with previous self-harm, suicide attempts and diagnoses of personality and eating disorder all had significantly less severe burns than DSHB patients without these risk factors (p < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In our experience, DSHB patients have more severe burn injuries and require longer, resource-intensive hospital stays. Burn units should have an appropriate specialist psychologist/psychiatrist who works within the Burn multi-disciplinary team to help manage this complex group of patients' healthcare needs and reduce their risk of further self-harm.
authors.affiliation: Foundation Doctor, Regional Burn Unit, St. John's Hospital at Howden, UK.
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Conlin
authors.affiliation: Foundation Doctor, Regional Burn Unit, St. John's Hospital at Howden, UK.
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Littlechild
authors.affiliation: Consultant Psychiatrist, Regional Burn Unit, St. John's Hospital at Howden, UK.
authors.forename: Hosakere
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Aditya
authors.affiliation: Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Regional Burn Unit, St. John's Hospital at Howden, UK Hilal.Bahia@nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk.
authors.forename: Hilal
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bahia
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002053:Burn Units; D002056:Burns / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012606:Scotland / Q000453:epidemiology; D016728:Self-Injurious Behavior / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: DSH; DSHB; Deliberate self–harm; deliberate self-harm by burning