Burns. 2026 Feb 14;52(5):107913. doi: 10.1016/j.burns.2026.107913. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Disasters involving a mass influx of burn victims (burn mass casualty incidents, BMCIs) are very specific and rare situations with a major impact on the healthcare systems affected. The aim was to assess the number of victims to be treated and the immediate capacity of expert hospitals to prepare a response to this type of disaster in France.
METHOD: A review of the literature was conducted, specifying the number of victims of BMCIs occurring worldwide between 1942 and 2023. The PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews) protocol was used to search PubMed, the Web of Science, and the Global Terrorism Database (GTD). Events with more than ten victims in the context of burns were included.
RESULTS: Out of 160,110 documents analysed, 202 BMCIs were selected. These events totaled 88,153 victims, including 17,432 hospital transfers which led to 7420 admissions, of whom 1016 were admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU). The median BMCI corresponds to 12 deaths and 31 survivors (29 hospital transfers, 12 admissions). A subgroup of 50 events provided more detailed data on burn patients (52,194 victims, including 4,734 confirmed burn injuries). The median BMCI involved 112 hospital transfers, resulting in 77 admissions, including 9 to the ICU. The analysis identified four primary categories of BMCIs: terrorism, building fire, industrial accident, and transportation accident.
CONCLUSIONS: The median number of victims in a BMCI enables the assessment of territorial breaking points, and preparation of measures to increase national reinforcements and the European cooperation system for this type of exceptional health situation.
PMID:41935437 | DOI:10.1016/j.burns.2026.107913
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