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Background: The prevalence of chronic wounds is expected to rise with the increasing elderly population in the society. This rise in prevalence of chronic wounds comes with its consequences such as wound pain and interference with activities of daily living. There's a paucity of data on the impact of chronic wounds in our clime., Objective: This study was carried out to assess the prevalence of wound-related pain and the impact of wound-related pain on the quality of life of patients with chronic wounds., Materials and Methods: This was an analytic cross-sectional study of consecutive patients presenting with chronic wounds in plastic surgery clinic in a metropolitan city in Nigeria using the brief pain inventory-short form., Result: About 371 patients were seen, with a male-to-female ratio of 1.7:1. The mean age was 37.1 ± 15.5 years. Most chronic wounds (72.2%) occurred in the lower limbs. Nearly all patients (92.9%) experienced wound pain, with a correlation between wound location and pain severity, P = 0.000. Over 50% of the patients had low wound-related quality of life. Enjoyment of life, general activity, and walking were the domains with high interference. Wound pain ( P = 0.000) and wound location ( P = 0.001) are significant determinants of poor wound-related quality of life., Conclusion: Patients with chronic wounds have a high prevalence of wound-related pain and low wound-related quality of life., Competing Interests: The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest or competing financial interests that could have influenced the outcome of this work., (© 2024 Journal of The West African College of Surgeons.)

Introduction: Topical agents applied to the burn wound as first aid measures have been noted to impact outcomes. The application of cool running water is effective when administered for at least 20 min within 3 h of burn as recommended by the Australian and New Zealand Burn Association. However, the American Burn Association recommends running water for 5 min, and only in minor burns. In Nigeria, there are no guidelines for duration of water application. Other agents are often applied in the prehospital setting despite education against such practices. This study was carried out to determine the practice of prehospital first aid and its impact on outcome of burn injuries., Method: This was a prospective observational study of all burn injured patients admitted to our burn unit between February 2013 and March 2020., Result: A total of 335 burn injury patients were included in this study, with a median age of 22 years. Males constituted 54.3 % of the patients. Flame injuries accounted for 60 % of cases, and median TBSA was 20.5 %. Majority of the patients received first aid (80.2 %), with 78.9 % receiving first aid within 30 min of injury. Water was applied for first aid in 53.2 % of patients. Application of water for a period of 5 min was associated with reduced rate of infection(P = 0.023), hospital length of stay (P = 0.012, and mortality(P = 0.001) compared with water application for 10 min, 20 min or just to extinguish flame. The use of running tap and water from a clean container were associated with reduced rate of infection (P = 0.041) and reduced mortality rate (P = 0.006) compared with other sources of water. Other agents applied were raw pap (a local custard) over the wound, honey, and raw egg, amongst others. These other agents were used either singly or in combination for a combined total of 205 times in 126 patients. These other topical agents had no statistically significant impact on outcome compared with those who did not receive these agents as first aid., Conclusion: The application of water for approximately 5 min and the use of running tap water or water from a clean container were associated with improved burn injury outcomes. The use of non-water agents had no statistically significant impact on the outcome measures., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors have no conflict of interest to declare concerning this work. There are no competing interests that could have influenced the outcome of this study., (Copyright © 2025 Elsevier Ltd and International Society of Burns Injuries. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Chronic wound presents a burden to the patient due to the effect on their quality of life and cost of care. The exact prevalence is difficult to assess due to insufficient data, different study designs, and deferent study definitions of chronic wounds. There is limited data on the prevalence and the burden of chronic wound in our subregion. This study was therefore carried out to establish the burden of chronic wound in order to document a baseline data for monitoring progress, as well as provide information for advocacy on equitable distribution of resources for wound care., Method: This was a retrospective review between January 2007 and December 2022. Data was analysed using SPSS., Result: A total of 866 patients with new chronic wounds were seen at an average of 54 cases per year. An average of 330 old and new chronic wounds are seen yearly. Chronic ulcers are developing at a rate of 1.2/1000 population, and the prevalence of chronic ulcer is 3.3/1000 population. Most patients were males (57.2 %), with a mean age of 41.7years ± 20.6. Post traumatic wound is the leading aetiology. Age correlates positively with aetiology, p=<0.001. Sickle cell and venous wounds are predominantly on the legs, p=<0.001. There is a correlation between increasing age and occurrence of chronic wound in the leg, p=<0.001., Conclusion: Post traumatic wound is the leading cause of chronic wound in our subregion. There is a need to improve care of acute wounds to reduce the burden of chronic wounds., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Background: Multiple trichoepitheliomas are rare benign adnexal tumours that present a unique challenge both to the patient and the managing physician. The multiple nature of the lesion and face being a common location often causes cosmetic concern and psychosocial challenges. Physicians on the other hand face the challenge of providing an ideal treatment with a satisfactory outcome. Dermabrasion and laser therapy have been used to treat this lesion successfully, though they require multiple sessions, and recurrence is common. These options are however either not available or unaffordable in low-resource countries such as Nigeria. Surgical excision though an option, has rarely been advocated due to scarring, leading some experts to offer no treatment at all in developing nations. We report a challenging case of sporadic multiple trichoepitheliomas successfully treated with surgical excision and full-thickness skin graft., Method: Following diagnosis, the patient was counselled on the procedure, the risks and benefits. She had en-bloc excision of the lesion, and full-thickness skin graft harvested from the right groin was transplanted and anchored with Monocryl 5-0. All wounds were dressed, and the graft site was reviewed on day 10. She was discharged for outpatient follow-up., Result: Graft take was 95%. Epidermolysis which was seen on postoperative day 10 resolved. Hypertrophic scar on the ala nasi is softening on scar massage, and the patient is very satisfied with the outcome., Conclusion: Surgical excision can be a valuable tool in low-resource settings for the management of multiple trichoepitheliomas., Competing Interests: Copyright © 2024 by West African Journal of Medicine., (The Authors declare that no competing interest exists.)

The pediatric age group has been noted to be particularly vulnerable to burn injuries. Burn is the fifth most common cause of childhood injuries. Nigeria has a very young population with a median age of 18.1 years. Scald is the most common form of burn injuries in this age group globally; however, previous reports from our institution found flame to be the most common form of burn in pediatric age. The most recent report from 13 years ago still maintained flame as the most common cause of pediatric burn injury. This study was carried out to determine the changes in epidemiology and outcome of pediatric thermal burn injury. This was a retrospective study carried out between January 2013 and December 2022. Data were analyzed using the statistical package for social sciences software version 23. The significance was set at a P-value of .05. Two hundred and sixty-five children presented with thermal burn with a male-to-female ratio of 1.3:1. 63.4% occurred in children 0-5 years. Scald (59.6%) was the most common cause of injury. Most flame injuries in females were due to liquified petroleum gas cookstove explosion, while petrol explosion was the most common cause in males (P ≤ .001). There is a yearly increase in burn depth (P = .009). Most inhalation injuries occurred in those aged 11-16 years (P = .006). Mortality rate was 10.2%, with total body surface area burned (P ≤ .001), burn depth (P ≤ .001), and inhalation injury (P ≤ .001) associated with increasing mortality. Scald is now the most common cause of thermal burn in our institution, with a remarkable reduction in mortality rate., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Burn Association. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Worldwide, thermal burn is the leading etiological type of burn injury accounting for 86% of burn injuries requiring admissions. Flame, Scald, and contact burn are the leading causes of thermal burn. Changes in the sociodemographic characteristics of societies have led to alterations in the epidemiology of burn. An understanding of such changes in the epidemiology of burn is essential in formulating and executing adequate burn prevention programs. We sought to establish the current trend in the etiology, gender distribution, age, occurrence of inhalation injury, burn surface area, burn depth, and mortality rate of thermal burns at Ibadan. This was a retrospective study carried out between January 2013 and December 2022. Thermal burns constitute 92% of burn injuries. The male-to-female ratio was 1.4:1. There were 265 (45%) patients in the pediatric age group and 323 adults (55% of the patients). The proportion of flame, scald, and contact burns were 378 (58%), 203 (32%), and 14 (2%), respectively. Flame burns resulting from liquified petroleum gas (LPG) explosion show a rising trend, with a decline in flame burns from kerosene (P < .001). One hundred and ninety (32%) patients had inhalation injury. The overall mortality was 19% (N = 114). Kerosene flame, 38% (17 of 45 patients), and LPG, 32% (41 of 130 patients), were the most lethal causes of flame injuries (P < .043). The study shows the increasing contribution of LPG to the etiology of thermal burn injuries. Burn prevention programs should target safe use of LPG stoves and cylinders., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Burn Association. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

The coronavirus disease and the subsequent pandemic that followed drastically changed human civilization with disruptive effects on health and overall wellbeing of mankind. This disruptive effect has been shown to include changes in epidemiology of burn injuries. This study therefore aimed to determine the impact of covid-19 on acute burn presentation at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan. This was a retrospective study carried out between April 1, 2019 and March 31, 2021. The period was divided into two: April 1, 2019 to March 31, 2020 and April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021. Data obtained from the burn unit registry were analyzed using the Scientific Package For Social Sciences version 25. The only statistically significant finding from this study was the marked reduction in burn ICU admission during the pandemic (P < 0.001). A total of 144 patients presented to the burn intensive care unit at UCH, Ibadan during the period under review with 92 patients in the prepandemic year, and 52 patients in the pandemic year. Patient group from 0- to 9-year-olds representing 42% in prepandemic, and 30.8% in the pandemic period was the most affected age group. Scald was predominantly among the pediatric age group in both groups. Males were more likely to suffer flame burn in both study periods with a near gender equilibration during the pandemic. Burn injury during the pandemic resulted in more total body surface area burned. The lockdown effect of the pandemic resulted in a significant reduction in acute burn admissions at the UCH, Ibadan., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Burn Association. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Background: Accurate burn wound size estimation is important for resuscitation and subsequent management. It is also important for the development of referral guidelines in Nigeria., Objective: To establish whether a significant discrepancy exists in burn size estimation between referral centers and burn units., Methods: A retrospective review of burn patients managed at the burn unit of a premier tertiary hospital in Ibadan, southwestern Nigeria, between January 1, 2016, and October 31, 2019 was conducted. Patients' demographic and other characteristics, inclusive of TBSA estimation from point of referral and the burn unit, were retrieved and analyzed., Results: A total of 96 burn injury records were found for the study period, with a male-to-female ratio of 1.3:1. Thirty-five records (36.5%) included no burn size estimation by the referring physician. There was a statistically significant difference in TBSA estimation between referring physicians and burn unit physicians (P = .015). Burn wounds were more likely to be overestimated than underestimated (P = .016). Overestimation is more likely with minor burns and in pediatric patients. Underestimation was more likely in adults., Conclusion: There is a significant difference in burn size estimation between burn unit physicians and referring physicians. This finding underscores the need for continuous education on burn estimation to aid proper referral and management.