If you live in a rich nation, there are fewer chances of you getting burn injuries. A study done over a span of 15 years has proved that the more the GDP, the less the incidence of burns. But there is some good news for India. There has been a “significant” decline in the average yearly burn admissions in the last one decade, says the study titled “An Analysis of Burn Admissions and Evaluation of Conservative Management Techniques”, released as part of the 15th World Congress International Confederation for Plastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery (IPRAS) on Friday.

"The incidence of severe burns is extremely high in the low and middle east countries with an estimated 90 per cent of the world incidence, of which 50 per cent is in South East Asia," said Dr Rajeev B Ahuja, president of IPRAS Congress, Delhi, India, and Head of Department of Burns, Plastic Maxillofacial and Micro-vascular Surgery, Lok Nayak Hospital. “The incidence and profile of burns directly reflects on the economic development of the society. India has a very high incidence of burn injuries which has become a formidable public health issue.”

But the situation is improving. "Primarily as the fuel changes from kerosene to LPG to electricity, the rate of burn incidents is also coming down," said Dr Ahuja, who has compiled the study, which was done in two phases, from 1993-2000 and 2001-2007.

Kitchens continue to remain the main location for mishaps, but the "yearly admission rate from kitchen accidents dropped from 897.5 patients in phase I to 368.43 patients in phase II." The study shows that 93.56 per cent of cases of burns occurred at home and occupational burns accounted for only 4.06 percent.