Running water while bathing is a risk factor for pediatric scald burns.

Introduction: Scalds are the most common mechanism of burn injury in pediatric populations and scald burns sustained during bathing present a unique opportunity for injury prevention. Evidence-based infant bathing educational resources recommend checking water temperature and having a caregiver present for the duration of the bath, but do not explicitly recommend avoiding running water or explain the associated risks. This study seeks to determine the incidence and role of running water in bathing scald burns at our institution.

Methods: This is a retrospective review of pediatric patients (<3 years) admitted to the University of Chicago Burn Center with scald injury from bathing between 2010 and 2020. Cases were reviewed to assess the following risk factors: whether there was running water, whether water temperature was checked before placing the child in water, and whether a caregiver was present for the entire bath. Injuries in which the manner of injury was abuse or indeterminate were excluded.

Results: The study cohort included 101 cases of scalds due to bathing, with a mean age of 13 months and mean burn size of 7% TBSA. Of these 101 cases, 96 (95%) involved running water. Thirty-seven cases (37%) had only one of the three risk factors and 95% of those 37 cases involved running water. Twenty-nine cases (29%) involved all three risk factors while only two cases (2%) involved none of the three risk factors. Sixty-one cases (60%), thirty-nine cases (39%), and one case (1%) occurred in a sink, bathtub, or infant tub, respectively.

Conclusion: We found that the vast majority of bathing scald burns involved running water, identifying a specific bathing recommendation that should be added to existing guidelines to reduce the incidence of bathing scald burns.