Serial casting for the improvement of joint contracture after burn injury, a case report

Abstract

Treatment for burn scars with associated joint contracture has been a long-studied topic with few concrete, definitive answers. While preventative measures for burn scar contracture are often discussed, very few recent papers highlight conservative treatment after burn scar contracture formation. We present two cases of a patients with scar contracture after burn wound treatment that improved in mobility and range of motion after serial casting. Although our patients were mature from a musculoskeletal standpoint, our first patient was able to improve her neutral ankle position by 20° with progressive, fixed ankle dorsiflexion and our second was able to improve 50° with progressive, fixed elbow extension achieved through serial casting. Because of our success with these patients, we believe serial casting may be a promising option when treating inpatient burn scar contractures across joints.

Keywords

• Burn contracture
• Serial casting
• Burn scar
• Case report