The medical histories of 1831 burn patients treated at the Medical College of Virginia during the period 1949 through 1962 have been examined by probit analysis. The mortality rate was compared as related to age, total body surface area of the burn, third degree surface area burned, race, sex, time of admission following the burn injury, and the year of admission. There is a relationship between expected mortality, age and total body surface area of the burn. However, the error in expected mortality indicates a need for a more accurate method of prediction. Time of admission to the hospital following the burn and sex were not important, but the race of the patient is of some importance in predicting eventual outcome of the thermal injury. The LA50 value has been found to be a useful figure to express tolerance of a patient, or a selected group of patients for burn injury. There is a striking difference between the effects of second and third degree burn injuries in that the partial-thickness injury is rarely lethal.

DASA-1687.