Sauna-related burns: a review of 154 cases treated in Kuopio University Hospital Burn Center 1994-2000.

Abstract

Bathing in sauna has been customary for Finnish people for centuries. However, there are no actual reviews on sauna-related burns in the literature. This 7-year retrospective analyses of 598 burn patients treated in Kuopio University Hospital Burn Unit revealed that every fourth burn in our unit was sauna-related, giving a total of 154 cases. Most of these burns were minor but 54% required operative treatment. A total of 71% of patients were male and 40% of all patients were under the influence of alcohol. The incidence of sauna-related burns in Finland according to our material is 7/100,000, giving a total of 357 patients annually. Hence, there is one sauna-related burn per day requiring hospitalization in Finland.