Psychological impact of burn scars on quality of life in patients with extensive burns who received allotransplant.

With the remarkable progress in the field of burns treatment, the outcome of extensive burns improved significantly. The increased likelihood of survival of a burn victim heightens concerns for potential psychological morbidity for the survivors. Hypertrophic scarring is devastating and can result in disfigurement that affects quality of life. To assess the impact of burn scars on the quality of life of the survivors, we used two scales: the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire to evaluate the quality of life and the POSAS scale for the subjective evaluation of the post-burn scars in 26 patients who suffered extensive burns and received allotransplant. A significant correlation was observed between the WHOQOL-BREF score and POSAS scale (r=-0.93, p<0.001). In conclusion, burn scar visibility and severity did have a strong relationship with the quality of life in the survivors of a major burn who received allotransplant. Therefore, more effort must be placed into developing psychosocial interventions that help survivors to accept scars, reduce depression and build a strong supportive system.