Review of the epidemiology of burn injuries in Ethiopia; implications for study design and prevention

Background: 90% of burn deaths occur in lower resource settings, where prevention programs are uncommon. Efficient planning and resource allocation for prevention requires consistent and reliable data. Published research on burn epidemiology from these settings is limited in scope and rigor and often not replicable. Objective: The objective of the review was; to examine the literature to determine what information exists on the epidemiology of burn injuries in Ethiopia; to assess its utility and suitability for planning interventions for burn prevention. Methods: Taking a public health approach in which burn injuries fall within the broader field of injury, a broad key term search was performed in Safety Lit and MEDLINE. We reviewed the literature on burn epidemiology in Ethiopia, to assess its utility and suitability for planning interventions for burn prevention. Results: Our search strategy yielded more information than burn specific search strategies. We identified 23 studies drawn from observational and primarily hospital-based, cross sectional studies. They offer a preliminary evidence base that can be used to make recommendations for future surveillance, risk factor exploration and prevention initiatives. Conclusion: We conclude that the low rate of burn cases identified from observational studies; the challenge of defining and coding injury in the field; recall bias; mean case series data from tertiary units are more efficient and sustainable for monitoring burn epidemiology in Ethiopia. We recommend the establishment of a national trauma registry or WHO’s Global Burn Registry (GBR) to gather data in Ethiopia and countries in comparable settings. Community studies, provide the best avenue to gauge knowledge, attitudes and practices relevant to injury prevention, first aid and health seeking behaviour. This critical preliminary synthesis on burn epidemiology frames future national research and policy on burn surveillance and prevention. Keywords: Injury, Ethiopia, Epidemiology, Prevention, Burns

Abstract licence: CC BY-NC-ND

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