Epidemiology, Outcomes, and Prognostic Score Performance in 12,203 Burn Patients at Vietnam’s National Burn Referral Hospital: A Five-Year Retrospective Cohort Study (2021–2025)

Contemporary longitudinal data on burn epidemiology in Southeast Asia are limited. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 12,203 patients admitted to Vietnam’s national burn referral hospital from 2021 to 2025. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Factors associated with mortality were assessed using multivariable logistic regression, and the discrimination of the Baux score, Frank index, Unit Burn Score (UBS), and Prognostic Burn Index (PBI) was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic analysis. Overall, 68.3% of patients were male, mean age was 27.8 ± 21.8 years, and median total body surface area (TBSA) burned was 6% (interquartile range 2–14%). Dry heat (40.6%) and scalds (39.8%) predominated. The proportion of electrical burns increased from 12.5% in 2021 to 19.0% in 2024 and 16.0% in 2025 (odds ratio per year 1.064; 95% confidence interval 1.028–1.100). In-hospital mortality was 2.85% (348 deaths), showed no significant temporal trend, and reached 46.4% at TBSA ≥ 50%. Older age, larger TBSA, greater deep-burn extent, inhalation injury, and burn shock were independently associated with death. Areas under the curve were 0.957 (UBS), 0.956 (Frank), 0.949 (Baux), and 0.941 (PBI). These data provide a contemporary benchmark for burn prevention, risk stratification, and service planning in Vietnam.