Comparing oil based ointment versus standard practice for the treatment of moderate burns in Greece: A cost effectiveness evaluation

INTERVENTION: Patients will be randomised to receive either: 1. Moist exposed burn ointment (MEBO), applied twice per day with the assistance of nursing staff 2. Povidone iodine plus bepanthenol. Bepanthenol cream is self applied or applied with the assistance of nursing personnel twice per day after the third or fourth day of therapy with povidone iodine according to the degree of repithelilization. The burn wounds (both groups) were also treated and lightly debrided by antiseptic in the shower every second day by nursing or medical personnel. Also, dressing of the burn wounds during hospitalization is not applicable primarily because of considerable shortcomings in nursing personnel. CONDITION: Burns ; Injury, Occupational Diseases, Poisoning ; Burn and corrosion, body region unspecified PRIMARY OUTCOME: 1. Mean reduction in days of in‐hospital stay for patients in both groups (standard length of stay according to the experts=10 days) ; 2. Time of recovery for patients with superficial partial thickness burns (Transepidermal Water Loss [TEWL] <60 gr/m2/h) using the TEWL indicator, recovery defined as 50% reduction of the TEWL on the first day SECONDARY OUTCOME: 1. Pain; A visual analogue scale of 1 to 10 is used for pain measurement (0 = no pain; 1‐2 = slight pain; 3‐4 = mild pain; 5 = moderate pain; 6‐9 = moderately severe pain; 10 = severe pain). Pain scores were recorded twice daily by the doctors. Pain medication is given upon patient demand ; 2. Clinical evaluation of the appearance of burn limits ; A clinical evaluation of the appearance of burn limits is made each day by the doctor. We have used a binary and a continuous variable to quantify these criteria. The modalities of the first variable are: ; 2.1. Healthy appearance of burn limits; 2.2. No Healthy appearance (presenting redness, swelling, other) INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. Total Burns Surface Area (TBSA) <15%. 2. Thermal burns 3. No need of surgical operation 4. Either sex, aged 18‐75