ELECTRICAL BURNS OF THE MOUTH - STILL SEARCHING FOR AN ANSWER

This report is a review of the literature and the clinical experience of electrical bums of the mouth in the West Midlands Regional Bums Uni t at the Birmingham Accident Hospital, UK, over the past 10 years. The re were Foe patients, four were children, 9 months to 5 years of age, and one adult. All patients had electrical conduction injuries involvi ng the lips and perioral structures with involvement of the oral commi ssure. Electrical are and flash bums were not included in this study. One child had a severe electrical injury and posed a difficult managem ent problem. Although a variety of reconstructive procedures are avail able, the dilemma between conservative treatment and immediate reconst ruction persists. Early intraoral splinting hers been suggested in the literature. If was not used in any of the patients in this series and , though it may be beneficial, the patient compliance of a paediatric population may be questionable. The incidence of electrical bums has b een on the decline, but those affecting the mouth still continue to be a major problem in management.