Burn Statistics                                                                                                              

  • In the United States, approximately 2.4 million burn injuries are reported per year. Approximately 650,000 of the injuries are treated by medical professionals; 75,000 are hospitalized. Of those hospitalized, 20,000 have major burns involving at least 25% of their total body surface.

     

  • Between 8,000 and 12,000 of patients with burns die, and approximately one million will sustain substantial or permanent disabilities resulting from their burn injury. (Journal of Burn Care & Rehabilitation, May/June 1992)

    (Note: These burn statistics are for the United States only and only take into account burn injuries that are reported. Many burns, for which people seek relief, go un-reported, such as sunburns, minor scalds, match burns, iron burns, curling iron burns, burns from coffee, etc.)

  • Burn injuries are second to motor vehicle accidents as the leading cause of accidental death in the United States.

     

  • 41,000 heat burns resulted in an average of four lost days of work each.

     

  • 15,700 chemical burns resulted in an average of two lost days of work each.

    Elderly Burn Statistics

  • From ages 5 to 74, most burn injuries occur outdoors with the next most frequent area being the kitchen.

     

  • From ages 75 and above, frequently the kitchen is the area burns injuries occur, with outdoor fire accidents being next.

     

  • The National Burn Information Exchange indicates that after the age of 60, the risk of burn injury is greater than at any time since childhood and the average size of the burn is larger than for any other age group.

     

  • The most common burn accidents for older adults are from flame or scalding, lighting trash fires or a furnace, bathing or falling asleep while smoking.

    Child Burn Statistics

  • Children, ages newborn to two-years-old, are most frequently admitted for emergency burn care in a hospital. The kitchen is most frequently the area in the home where burn injuries occur for children newborn to four. The next most frequent area is in the bathroom.

     

  • Approximately 99,500 children ages 14 and under were treated at hospital emergency rooms for burn-related injuries last year - 62,580 were thermal burns, 23,620 were scald burns, 9,430 were chemical burns, and 2,250 were electrical burns.

     

  • 80% of burn injuries occur in and around the home.

     

  • Burns and fires are the leading cause of accidental death in the home for children 14 and under.

     

  • Hot tap water scald burns cause more deaths and hospitalizations than any other hot liquid burns.

     

  • Most scald burns to children, especially small children, are caused by hot foods or liquids spilled in the kitchen.

     

  • The skin of a child is thinner so they burn faster and deeper than adults.

     

  • Scalds are the leading cause of accidental death in the home for children from birth to age four and are 40% of the burn injuries for children up to age 14.

     

  • Frequently the kitchen is the area in the home where burn injuries occur for children newborn to four.

     

  • Boys, especially between the ages 10 and 14, are at the highest risk of fireworks-related injuries. Children ages 4 and under are at the highest risk for sparkler-related injuries.

     

  • Nearly 75 percent of all burns in children are preventable
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Most recent statistics:

 
Burn Incidence and Treatment in the US: 2007 Fact Sheet

Below are some key statistics regarding burn injuries and deaths in the U.S., derived from a variety of sources.  Please keep in mind that, except for vital statistics (births and deaths), national health statistics such as those for burn incidence and treatment generally take the form of estimates drawn from sample surveys.   

Burn Injuries Receiving Medical Treatment Per Year: 500,000
The 500,000 estimate for treated burns represents a blend of the most recent estimates from several federal surveys which capture data on visits to hospital emergency departments and outpatient clinics, free-standing urgent care centers, and private physician offices. For all sites except hospital emergency departments, the number of burns in the survey sample is too small to provide a valid separate statistic.
Sources: National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey; National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey; Medical Expenditure Panel; CPSC/NEISS (National Electronic Injury Surveillance System), (2000-2004 data).
 
Fire and Burn Deaths Per Year: 4,000
This total includes an estimated 3,500 deaths from residential fires and 500 from motor vehicle and aircraft crashes, contact with electricity, chemicals or hot liquids and substances, and other sources of burn injury. About 75% of these deaths occur at the scene of the incident or during initial transport. Fire and burn deaths are combined because deaths from burns in fires cannot always be distinguished from deaths which result from smoke poisoning.
Sources: National Fire Protection Association (2005); American Burn Association National Burn Repository
(2005 report); US Vital Statistics (2004).        

Hospitalizations for Burn Injury Per Year: 40,000 total, including 25,000 admissions to hospitals with specialized burn centers
More than 60% of the 40,000 U.S. hospitalizations for burn injury each year are now admitted to the 125 hospitals with specialized burn centers. This percentage has increased steadily in recent decades, as emergency care and transportation has improved. Burn centers now average 200 such admissions a year, while the other 5,000 US hospitals average less than three burn admissions per year.
Sources: National Hospital Discharge Survey (2003); Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality: Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project/ National Inpatient Sample (2003); Selected state hospital data systems (2002-2004); American Burn Association National Burn Repository (2005 report).

Selected Statistics on Admissions to Burn Centers, 1995-2005
Survival Rate:  94.4% 
Total Body Surface Area Burned (TBSA):  Over one-third of admissions (38%) exceeded 10% TBSA, and 10% exceeded 30% TBSA. Most included severe burns of such vital body areas as the face, hands and feet.  
Gender:  70% male, 30% female
Ethnicity:  62% Caucasian, 18% African-American, 12% Hispanic, 8% Other
Burn Cause:  46% fire/flame, 32% scald, 8% hot object contact, 4% electrical, 3% chemical, 6% other
Place of Occurrence:  43% home, 17% street/highway, 8% occupational, 32% other
Uninsured/Government Pay:  31% of patients were uninsured, underinsured or private/self-pay; 25% were insured by government programs. 
Source: American Burn Association National Burn Repository (2005 report), which data base includes information on more than 126,000 acute burn admissions from 70 burn centers in the United States.  



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