Abstract
Topical chemotherapy, prompt excision, and timely closure of the burn wound have significantly reduced the occurrence of invasive burn wound infection and its related mortality. Since wound protection is imperfect and invasive wound infection may still occur in patients with massive burns in whom wound closure is delayed, scheduled wound surveillance and biopsy monitoring are necessary to assess the microbial status of the burn wound and identify wound infections caused by resistant bacteria or non-bacterial opportunists at a stage when therapeutic intervention can control the process.
As a reflection of the systemic immunosuppressive effects of burn injury, infection remains the most common cause of morbidity and mortality even though the occurrence of wound infections has been significantly decreased. Pneumonia is the most frequent infection occurring in burn patients today but the improvements in patient management, wound care, and infection control have made bronchopneumonia the most common form of this infection and gram-positive organisms the most common causative agents. The organisms causing bacteremia that exert a species specific effect on the mortality related to extent of burn injury and patient age have changed in concert with changes in wound flora.
Infection control procedures, including scheduled surveillance cultures, utilization of cohort patient care methodology, strict enforcement of patient and staff hygiene, and patient monitoring have been effective in eliminating endemic resistant microbial strains, preventing the establishment of newly introduced resistant organisms, diagnosing infection in a timely fashion, instituting antibiotic and other necessary therapy in a prompt manner, and documenting the effectiveness of present day burn patient care and the improved survival of burn patients.
Résumé
Des antibiotiques locaux, une excision rapide et une couverture cutanée ont contribué à réduire de façon significative la fréquence des infections des plaies et la mortalité qui en découle. La protection des plaies est cependant encore imparfaite et l'invasion massive des plaies est un risque réel chez les brûlés dont la fermeture cutanée est retardée. Une surveillance des plaies avec prélèvements systématiques à intervalles répétés est nécessaire pour évaluer la flore microbienne de la brûlure et identifier les infections provoquées par des souches bactériennes résistantes ou des germes opportunistes non bactériens à un stade oú l'intervention thérapeutique peut étre utile. Du fait de la dépression des fonctions immunologiques chez le brûlé, l'infection reste la cause la plus fréquente de morbidité et de mortalité même si la fréquence de survenue même des infections a diminué. Les infections pulmonaires sont la complication la plus fréquente chez le brûlé aujourd'hui malgré les améliorations dans le traitement global des plaies et surtout dans celui de l'infection. Les germes gram positif sont le plus souvent en cause. Le type de germes provoquant une bactériémie, responsable d'une mortalité variable suivant l'âge et l'étendue des lésions, a changé en même temps que la flore des plaies s'est modifiée. Les procédés de maîtrise de l'infection, comme mises en culture systématique des prélèvements, l'utilisation d'une méthodologie de cohortes, l'exigence d'une hygiène stricte pour les patients et le personnel ainsi que la surveillance des patients ont permis de gros progrès. L'élimination des souches microbiennes endémiques résistantes, la limitation de l'introduction de nouveaux germes résistants, la précocité du diagnostic d'infection, l'institution d'un traitement antibiotique approprié et l'évaluation de l'efficacité des soins quotidiens ont ainsi amélioré la survie des brûlés.
Resumen
La terapia tópica, la resección temprana y el oportuno cierre de la quemadura han reducido en forma significativa la infección invasiva de la herida y su concomitante mortalidad. Puesto que la protección de la herida es imperfecta y la infección invasiva puede occurrir en los pacientes con quemaduras masivas en quienes el cierre de la herida se ha retardado, se hace necesario realizar vigilancia programada de la herida y monitoría mediante biopsia para determinar el estado microbiológico de la quemadura e identificar infecciones por bacterias resistentes o por organismos oportunísticos no bacterianos en una etapa en que la intervención terapéutica pueda controlar el proceso.
Como un reflejo de los efectos immunosupresores sistémicos de la lesión térmica, la infección se mantiene como la causa más común de morbilidad y mortalidad, a pesar de que la incidencia de infección de la quemadura ha disminuido en forma significativa. Actualmente la neumonía es la infección más frecuente en el paciente quemado, pero los avances en el tratamiento total del paciente, en el manejo de la herida y en el control de la sepsis han hecho de la bronconeumonía la forma más común de este tipo de infección y de los microogranismos gram positivos los agentes causales más comunes. Los gérmenes causantes de bacteremia que ejercen un efecto específico sobre la mortalidad relacionada con la extensión de la quemadura y la edad del paciente han variado en concierto con los cambios en la flora de la herida.
Los procedimeientos de control de la infección, incluso la vigilancia programada mediante cultivos, la utilización de metodologías basadas en cohortes de pacientes, la estricta implementación de medidas de higiene del paciente y del personal y la monitoría del paciente han resultado eficaces en eliminar las cepas endémicas resistentes, en prevenir el establecimiento de gérmenes resistentes recientemente introducidos, en diagnosticar la infección en forma oportuna, en instituir antibioticoterapia y otras formas de terapia precozmente y en documentar la eficacia del manejo actual del paciente quemado y mejorar su supervivencia.
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Pruitt, B.A., McManus, A.T. The changing epidemiology of infection in burn patients. World J. Surg. 16, 57–67 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02067116
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02067116