Delayed neural damage induced by lightning and electrical injury: neural death, vascular necrosis and demyelination?

The structural damage to vascular endothelial cell In a recent article in the journal Brain Injury, four potential hypotheses for delayed neurological disorders following lightning and electrical injury were suggested （Reisner, 2013）. The phenomenon of delayed neurodegenerative syndromes following lighting and electrical injury has been known since the early 1930s （Critchley, 1934）, but to the present day, the mechanisms involved have been poorly un- derstood. An initial and still plausible theory is that the electrical insult causes damage to the vascular structures feeding the spinal cord via damage to vascular endothelial cells （Farrell and Starr, 1968）.

Bilateral Macular Lesions Following Electrical Injury

HIGH-VOLTAGE electrical injuries can result in a variety of ocular complications. Cataract and macular edema are the most common injuries.Other injuries include punctate keratopathy,uveitis,macular hole,subretinal macular haemorrhage,and choroidal atrophy.We report a case that optical coherence tomography （OCT） and multifocal electro- retinogram （mfERG） clearly demonstrated the bilateral macular lesions following electrical injury, while the fundus examination was nearly normal.

Post electrical or lightning injury syndrome: a proposal for an American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual formulation with implications for treatment

In the past, victims of electrical and lightning injuries have been assessed in a manner lacking a system- atic formulation, and against ad hoc criteria, particularly in the area of neuropsychological disability. In this manner patients have, for example, only been partially treated, been poorly or incorrectly diagnosed, and have been denied the full benefit of compensation for their injuries. This paper contains a proposal for diagnostic criteria particularly for the neuropsychological aspects of the post injury syndrome. It pays attention to widely published consistent descriptions of the syndrome, and a new cluster analysis of post electrical injury patients. It formulates a proposal which could be incorporated into future editions of the American Psychiatric Association＇s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual （DSM）. The major neuropsycholog- ical consequences include neurocognitive dysfunction, and memory subgroup dysfunction, with ongoing consequences, and sometimes including progressive or delayed psychiatric, cognitive, and/or neurological symptoms. The proposed diagnostic criteria insist on a demonstrated context for the injury, both specifying the shock circumstance, and also physical consequences. It allows for a certain delay in onset of symptoms. It recognizes exclusory conditions. The outcome is a proposal for a DSM classification for the post electrical or lightning injury syndrome. This proposal is considered important for grounding patient treatment, and for further treatment trials. Options for treatment in electrical or lightning injury are summarised, and future trials are foreshadowed.

Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment following electrical shock injury

Dear Editor,We present a case of 'Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment following electrical shock injury' for evaluation for publication in your journal. To our knowledge,this is the first case of retinal tears and retinal detachment caused by an electrical shock reported in the literature. That

Neurological and neuropsychological consequences of electrical and lightning shock： review and theories of causation

Injuries from lightning and electrical injuries involve multiple systems of the body, however neurological symptoms are very widely reported. A disabling neuropsychological syndrome is also noted. This paper presents a comprehensive review of neurological and neuropsychological symptoms. Partial theories of causation for these injuries have been advanced, however, there is no convincing explanation for both delay in onset of symptoms and also the genesis of the neuropsychological syndrome. A theory of causation is proposed which satisfies both these constraints. This theory suggests circulating hormones such as cortisol, together with nitric oxide and oxidant free radicals from glutamatergic hyper-stimulation, act on tissues remote from the injury path including the hippocampus. This theory opens a research path to explore treatment options.

Electrical stimulation of dog pudendal nerve regulates the excitatory pudendal-to-bladder reflex

Pudendal nerve plays an important role in urine storage and voiding.Our hypothesis is that a neuroprosthetic device placed in the pudendal nerve trunk can modulate bladder function after suprasacral spinal cord injury.We had confirmed the inhibitory pudendal-to-bladder reflex by stimulating either the branch or the trunk of the pudendal nerve.This study explored the excitatory pudendal-to-bladder reflex in beagle dogs,with intact or injured spinal cord,by electrical stimulation of the pudendal nerve trunk.The optimal stimulation frequency was approximately 15–25 Hz.This excitatory effect was dependent to some extent on the bladder volume.We conclude that stimulation of the pudendal nerve trunk is a promising method to modulate bladder function.

EXPERIENCE IN TREATING SECONDARY SYSTEMIC MYCOTIC INFECTION AFTER SEVERE BURNS ASSOCIATED WITH ELECTRIC INJURY

One patient with wound surface sepsis caused by secondary pyocyanic infection after extensive burns associated with visceral injuries (peptic ulcer hemorrhage, renal insufficiency and hepatic dysfunction) and generalied candidiasis albicans was cured after anti-infection treatment with proper antibiotics, removal of the infected focus, and effective anti-fungal drugs.

Large colonic lipoma with a laterally spreading tumor treated by endoscopic submucosal dissection:A case report

BACKGROUND Since fat does not transmit electrical energy well,delayed perforation and postpolypectomy syndrome due to electrical thermal injury are concerns in the endoscopic removal of colonic lipoma.The endoscopic submucosal dissection(ESD)technique concentrates electrical energy conducts to the submucosa,not the adipose tissue.This helps to minimize electrical thermal injury,especially in the case of large colonic lipomas.In rare cases,such as colonic lipomas accompanied by mucosal lesions,it is difficult for endoscopists to decide how to safely remove them.CASE SUMMARY A 78-year-old man underwent colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening.During colonoscopy,a yellowish submucosal tumor with positive cushion sign was observed in the ascending colon measuring about 4.5 cm.A nodular mucosal lesion of about 2.5 cm was observed on the mucosal surface of the lipoma.The lipoma was so large that it occupied much of the inside of the colon,making it difficult to see the entire laterally spreading tumor(LST)at once.The LST was confined to the surface of the lipoma,which had a semipedunculated shape with a wide neck.The margin of the LST was not observed at the neck of the lipoma.ESD was performed and the colonic lipoma with the LST was successfully removed without complications.After 3 d of hospitalization,the patient was discharged without any symptoms.The final pathology report showed that the lesion consisted of submucosal lipoma and tubulovillous adenoma with lowgrade dysplasia.CONCLUSION ESD is effective and safe for treating a large colonic lipoma with an LST by minimizing electrical thermal injury.

Case report of unilateral electric cataract with transmission electron microscopy image

Dear Sir,We hereby report a case of unilateral electric cataract with transmission electron microscopy（TEM）image.Ocular injuries induced by electricity can occur simultaneously or sequentially with the electric event,and occasionally occur later than the initial event.There are many ocular manifestations,with the most common one being

Delayed peripheral nerve repair: methods, including surgical ‘cross-bridging' to promote nerve regeneration

Despite the capacity of Schwann cells to support peripheral nerve regeneration, functional recovery after nerve injuries is frequently poor, especially for proximal injuries that require regenerating axons to grow over long distances to reinnervate distal targets. Nerve transfers, where small fascicles from an adjacent intact nerve are coapted to the nerve stump of a nearby denervated muscle, allow for functional return but at the expense of reduced numbers of innervating nerves. A 1-hour period of 20 Hz electrical nerve stimulation via electrodes proximal to an injury site accelerates axon outgrowth to hasten target reinnervation in rats and humans, even after delayed surgery. A novel strategy of enticing donor axons from an otherwise intact nerve to grow through small nerve grafts（cross-bridges） into a denervated nerve stump, promotes improved axon regeneration after delayed nerve repair. The efficacy of this technique has been demonstrated in a rat model and is now in clinical use in patients undergoing cross-face nerve grafting for facial paralysis. In conclusion, brief electrical stimulation, combined with the surgical technique of promoting the regeneration of some donor axons to ‘protect＇ chronically denervated Schwa nn cells, improves nerve regeneration and, in turn, functional outcomes in the management of peripheral nerve injuries.

Effect of low-frequency pulse percutaneous electric stimulation on peripheral nerve injuries at different sites

BACKGROUND： The postoperative recovery of nerve function in patients with peripheral nerve injury is always an important problem to solve after treatment. The electric stimulation induced electromagnetic field can nourish nerve, postpone muscular atrophy, and help the postoperative neuromuscular function. OBJECTIVE： To observe the effects of low-frequency pulse percutaneous electric stimulation on the functional recovery of postoperative patients with peripheral nerve injury, and quantitatively evaluate the results of electromyogram （EMG） examination before and after treatment. DESIGN ： A retrospective case analysis SETTING： The Sixth People＇s Hospital affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University PARTICIPANTS： Nineteen postoperative inpatients with peripheral nerve injury were selected from the De- partment of Orthopaedics, the Sixth People＇s Hospital affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University from June 2005 to January 2006, including 13 males and 6 females aged 24-62 years with an average of 36 years old. There were 3 cases of brachial plexus nerve injury, 3 of median nerve injury, 7 of radial nerve injury, 3 of ul- nar nerve injury and 3 of common peroneal nerve injury, and all the patients received probing nerve fiber restoration. Their main preoperative manifestations were dennervation, pain in limbs, motor and sensory disturbances. All the 19 patients were informed with the therapeutic program and items for evaluation. METHODS： ① Low-frequency pulse percutaneous electric stimulation apparatus： The patients were given electric stimulation with the TERESA cantata instrument （TERESA-0, Shanghai Teresa Health Technology, Co., Ltd.）. The patients were stimulated with symmetric square waves of 1-111 Hz, and the intensity was 1.2-5.0 mA, and it was gradually adjusted according to the recovered conditions of neural regeneration following the principle that the intensity was strong enough and the patients felt no obvious upset. They were treated for 4- 24 weeks, 10-30 minutes for each time, 1-3 times a day, and 6 weeks as a course. ② EMG examination was applied to evaluate the recoveries of recruitment, motor conduction velocity （MCV） and sensory conduction velocity （SCV） before and after treatment. The patients were examined with the EMG apparatus （DIS- A2000C, Danmark） before and after the treatment of percutaneous electric stimulation. ③Standards for evaluating the effects included cured （complete recovery of motor functions, muscle strength of grade 5, no abnormality in EMG examination）, obviously effective [general recovery of motor function, muscle strength of grade 4, no or a few denervation potentials, motor conduction velocity （MCV） and sensory conduction velocity （SCV）], improved （partial recovery of motor function, muscle strength of grade 3, denervation potentials and reinneration potentials, slowed MCV and SCV, invalid （no obvious changes of motor function）. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES： ① Ameliorated degree of the nerve function of the postoperative patients with peripheral nerve injury treated with percutaneous electric stimulation; ② Changes of EMG examination before and after treatment. RESULTS： All the 19 postoperative patients with peripheral nerve injury were involved in the analysis of results. ① Comparison of nerve function before and after treatment in 19 patients with peripheral nerve injury of different sites： For the patients with radial nerve injury （n=7）, the nerve functions all completely recovered after 8-week treatment, and the cured and obvious rate was 100% （7/7）; For the patients with brachial plexus nerve injury （n=3）, 1 case had no obvious improvement, and the cured and obvious rate was 67% （2/3）; For the patients with common peroneal nerve injury （n=3）, the extension of foot dorsum generally recovered in 1 case of nerve contusion after 4-week treatment, and the cured and obvious rate was 67% （2/3）; For the patients with median nerve injury （n=3）, muscle strength was obviously recovered, and the cured and obvious rate was 100% （3/3）; For the patients with ulnar nerve injury （n=3）, 1 case only had recovery of partial senses, and the cured and obvious rate was 67% （2/3）. Totally 9 cases were cured, 7 were obviously effective, 1 was improved, and only 2 were invalid. After 4 courses, the cured rate of damaged nerve function after four courses was 47% （9/19）, and effective rate was 89% （17/19）.② Comparison of EMG examination before and after treatment： Before and after percutaneous electric stimulation, he effective rates of recruitment, MCV and SCV were 89% （17/19）, 58% （11/19）, 47% （9/19） respectively, and there were extremely obvious differences （P〈 0.01）. CONCLUSION： ①Low-frequency pulse percutaneous electric stimulation can improve the nerve function of postoperative patients with peripheral nerve injury of different sites, especially that the injuries of radial nerve and median nerve recover more obviously. ②Percutaneous electric stimulation can ameliorate the indexes of EMG examination, especially the recruitment, in postoperative patients with peripheral nerve injury.

Clinical, brain electric earth map, endothelin and transcranial ultrasonic Doppler findings after hyperbaric oxygen treatment for severe brain injury

目的 探讨高压氧治疗重型颅脑损伤的疗效及机制。方法 重型颅脑损伤患者 35例为治疗组 ,2 0例为对照组 ,观察高压氧治疗前后临床 (GCS)、脑电地形图 (BEAM)、血内皮素 (ET)、经颅多普勒超声 (TCD)及预后 (GOS)的变化。结果 治疗组患者经高压氧治疗后临床 (GCS)、脑电地形图及预后均明显改善 ,与对照组相比有统计学意义。高压氧治疗 1个疗程后 ,治疗组血内皮素由 91 2 4± 12 18ng/L下降到 6 8 88± 14 37ng/L(P <0 0 1) ;经颅多普勒超声示大脑中动脉Vm也由 6 4 2± 4 8cm/s下降到 51 6± 4 2cm/s(P <0 0 1) ;同时 ,大脑中动脉VsPI也明显下降。统计学有显著性意义 (P <0 0 1)。结论 高压氧治疗能够明显改善重型颅脑损伤患者的临床、脑电地形图及预后 ,并且通过降低急性期血内皮素、改善大脑中动脉血流速度及血管阻力来改善重型颅脑损伤后脑血管痉挛及脑缺血缺氧。同时 ,降低颅内压是高压氧治疗重度颅脑损伤的重要机制之一。

Simultaneous bilateral femoral neck fractures after elec- trical shock injury： a case report

Simultaneous bilateral fractures of the femoral necks are rare injuries, especially when there is no underlying pathological condition. We report a 20-year-old man who sustained bilateral femoral neck fractures result- ing from an accidental electric shock with 440 V direct current. Simultaneous bilateral femoral neck fractures after electrical shock injury without falling from a height are rather uncom- mon in clinic. The main cause of the fracture may be muscle contraction. This case highlights that even in the absence of primary and secondary bone disease, bilateral fractures of the femoral necks can occur following electric shock injury. We successfully managed this case with bilateral cannu- lated screw fixation without bone grafting. Surgeons caring for patients with electrical injury should be aware of the possibility of skeletal injuries which can go unnoticed, lead- ing to delay in diagnosis and increased risk of complications.

Analysis of urgent reconstruction of electrical injuries

To summarize the reconstruction experience of the electrical injuries in emergency. Methods: All 309 wounds in 105 patients who suffered from electrical injuries were reviewed during a 10 year period from Jan. 1st 1986 to Dec. 31st, 1996. Treatment method, patient data and results were compared and analyzed. A comprehensive urgent reconstruction alternative used in all cases included the followings, 1) debriding the wound in emergency, 2) preserving the vital tissues as much as possible, even devitalized tissues or local necrosis, 3) transplanting these vital tissues during the first surgery if the functional reconstruction required, 4) nourishing the wound bed by tissue flaps covering with rich blood supply, 5) improving flap survival by continuous irrigation for 24-720 hours beneath the flaps with a compound medicine after surgery. Results: Satisfactory results were obtained with the extremity loss ratio of less than 7% in this group compared with 42.5 % which was 10 years before 1984 in the same hospital.Conclusions: This urgent comprehensive reconstruction alternative is an effective and workable method for reducing extremity loss of electrical injuries.

Missed posterior shoulder dislocation and McLaughlin lesion after an electrocution accident

Posterior shoulder dislocation is a rare event that may occur after a direct trauma, an epileptic seizure, electric shock or electroconvulsive therapy. In more than 50% of the cases, posterior dislocations are missed on initial evaluation and often misdiagnosed as frozen shoul- ders with unfortunate consequences. We present the case of a missed posterior suhluxation and reverse Hill Sachs lesion （McLaughlin lesion） in a 40-year-old woman caused by anelectric shock of 240 V. The patient underwent sur- gery in our institute two weeks after the injury. The humeralhead was reduced and the reverse Hill Sachs lesion was filled by demineralized bone matrix allograft with osteoinductive factors. Tendons were repaired and a temporaneous artrodesis was performed. At the final follow up of 12 months, we obtained a Costant Score of 93 and the patient returned to her previous daily activities.