Burns in Conflict: From Resuscitation to Reconstruction

Burn injuries become considerably more complex when they occur alongside blast, penetrating, orthopedic, and maxillofacial trauma. This webinar follows the clinical pathway from the first assessment to definitive reconstruction, with particular attention to decisions that matter in resource-limited and prolonged-evacuation environments.

The session covers burn pathophysiology and the zone of stasis, TBSA and depth assessment, inhalation injury, fluid resuscitation, urine output and lactate monitoring, circumferential burns and escharotomy, wound cleaning, dressings, early excision, grafting, and temporary wound coverage. Practical surgical details include reducing blood loss during excision, managing BTM integration and fluid collections, and choosing between autograft, cadaveric or porcine skin, and newer wound substitutes.

The discussion then moves beyond acute survival to reconstruction: Z-plasties, local flaps, tissue expansion, fractional CO2 laser, rehabilitation, nutrition, and scar management. Real wartime cases from Ukraine add another layer—burns combined with difficult airways, fractures requiring external fixation, limited vascular access, open abdominal trauma, and extremely large TBSA injuries. Throughout the webinar, the emphasis stays on prioritization: what must be treated immediately, what can safely wait, and how early decisions affect the options available later.