ABSTRACT

Objective: To examine post-burn bone loss and determine whether it was local or diffuse.

Methods: Thirty-six patients with burn injuries were investigated, and the total body surface area of the burns and their locations were recorded. The bone mineral densities of the lumbar 1–4 vertebrae, bilateral distal forearm, and bilateral proximal femur of the patients were recorded, and these were compared with the measurements of the non-burnt extremity.

Results: No statistically significant correlations existed among the total body surface area of the burns, their severity and the z-scores. In addition, when comparing the z-scores of the burnt extremity with those of the non-burnt extremity, no statistically significant difference was found (p > 0.05).

Conclusion: In this study, a remarkable decrease in bone mass occurred during the second month following the burn injuries. The post-burn bone loss could not be correlated with the severity of the burns, but these injuries caused systemic bone loss.