Pediatric Burn Surgery: From Acute Wound Care to Scar Reconstruction

Burn surgery is much more than closing a wound. Lesia Strilka walks through the clinical reasoning behind pediatric burn care: assessing burn depth and total body surface area, fluid resuscitation, infection control, dressing strategy and the difficult choice between conservative treatment and surgery.

The lecture moves into necrectomy, autologous skin grafting, biological and synthetic wound coverage, and technologies designed to create a neodermis when deeper tissues are exposed. Real pediatric cases show how wound management decisions made early can influence function and scarring years later.

A major focus is what happens after the wound has healed. Contractures, growing children, staged reconstruction, physical therapy, compression, silicone therapy, laser resurfacing and intralesional corticosteroids are discussed alongside practical experience and complications. The Q&A adds nuanced discussion on full-thickness versus split-thickness grafts, lipografting, rigottomy and the realities of burn reconstruction in Ukraine.