Running water during bath time puts children at risk of scald burns: Study reveals

Burn injuries or Scalds (damage to the skin caused by heat) are the primary type of injury that occurs among children. Scalds that happen while bathing provides a distinctive opportunity for injury prevention. Assessing water temperature by touch is insufficient for caregivers as they cannot accurately judge the recommended temperature, and water temperature can fluctuate while the faucet continues running.

The retrospective study looked at 101 cases of scald injuries in children under the age of three admitted to the University of Chicago Burn centre with scald injuries from bathing between 2010 and 2020. The study reviewed cases to evaluate the presence of running water, water temperature check before bathing, and the presence of a caregiver during the bath, while excluding injuries of undetermined or abusive nature.

The study revealed the key findings:

1. Of the 101 cases reviewed, 37 had only one of the three risk factors (running water, failure to check water temperature, or absence of a caregiver), and 95% of those cases involved running water.
2. Twenty-nine cases involved all three risk factors, while only two cases involved none of the three risk factors.
3. The study also found that scald burns occurred most frequently in the bathtub (39%) or sink (60%), with only one case occurring in an infant tub.

Scalds are the most common mechanism of burn injury in pediatric populations. The study's authors hope their findings will lead to updated guidelines to help reduce scald burns during bath time.

Dr. William Moser, the study's lead author, added, “Identifying a specific bathing recommendation that should be added to existing guidelines to reduce the incidence of bathing scald burns."

Reference:

Moser W., Bilka K., Vrouwe S., Glisck J. Ramaiah V., Running water while bathing is a risk factor for pediatric scald burns Burns 2023/03/23 0305-4179 doi: doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2023.03.014