Background: The Burn Centre at Haukeland University Hospital has had a national burn function since 1984.
Patients and methods: The following data were reviewed: area injured, age, sex, length of stay, mortality and county of residence for all admissions in the period 1984-2004.
Results: 1294 acute admissions for burns, chemical injuries or high-voltage injuries were identified. 71% of the patients were male. The mean age was 29.6 years; 24% were below 3 years of age. The mean (SD) area of injury was 19.5 +/- 18.3 % of the body surface area. 458 patients (35%) had burns involving less than 10% of the body surface area. The mean length of hospitalisation was 19.5 +/- 19.8 days. 140 patients (10.8%) died before discharge; these had a significantly higher age and injured area than the 1154 survivors. Every year there were 2-3 patients who had such extensive burns or substantial comorbidity that they only received palliative treatment. The probability of survival after a burn affecting 60% of the body surface, was around 50 % for all ages combined. On average 1.17 patients per 100.000 inhabitants were transferred annually from other parts of Norway for specialized treatment at this burn centre.
Interpretation: Despite societal focus on burn prevention measures there has been no reduction in the number of patients transferred to the burn centre during the 20-year period.