The attack on psychosomatic integrity: a study of the psychological sequelae of burn trauma

Burns pathology is characterized not only by insidious damage to the patients' outward appearance but also by the equally painful emotional difficulties they encounter as they reorganize their identity and their personal history. This exploratory survey, combining research work with medical action, considers the cases of 41 outpatients who were hospitalized and subjected to skin grafting. The patients were recruited through the database of the Palermo Civic Hospital Plastic Surgery and Burns Therapy Operative Unit. The questionnaires were compiled 6 and 12 months post-burn (12 months' observation). The main objective of the research was to investigate the quality of life of burn patients in relation to the way they handled their condition on the emotional level, in order to cope with the stress caused by the burn.