From 1966 to 1983, skeletal suspension was used at the Shriners Burns
Institute, Galveston, Texas, for the treatment of 626 burned pediatric
patients who had 1128 affected extremities. Skeletal suspension was used
for 863 acutely burned extremities (76.5 per cent) to facilitate
skin-grafting and in 265 extremities (23.5 per cent) for functional
positioning in the surgical correction of burn-acquired deformities. In a
retrospective examination of these patients, there were fifty complications
(4.4 per cent) related to the skeletal suspension, of which forty-five (4.0
per cent) were infections. All infections resolved with removal of the pins
or the administration of antibiotics, or both. With this established low
rate of complications, skeletal suspension continues to be a useful adjunct
in the care of the severely burned pediatric patient.