Electrical injuries are relatively uncommon events, accounting for about 3% of admissions to hospital burn units¹. However, 90% of all high-voltage injuries are male utility company employees².

Electrical injury manifestations are frequently devastating in scope and require an intensive approach to evaluation, monitoring and management. There are several mechanisms by which contact with an electrical source may indirectly injure the patient, such as burn injuries caused by ignition of clothing, by the arcing current or the skeletal trauma from violent muscular contraction. Most of the most serious injuries are caused as the electrical current passes through tissue³.

In short, there are simply too many areas of potential discussion concerning electrical injuries, to address in this page; if you have any questions, contact an experienced attorney to discuss the specifics of your situation.

1. DIVINCENTI FC, MONCRIEF JA, PRUITT BA: Electrical Injuries: A review of 65 cases. in J TRAUMA 1969;9:497.

2. BUTLER ED, GANT TD: Electrical injuries with specific reference to the upper extremities.in AM J SURG 1997;134:95

3. KENNETH PERRET, CHARLES WEBER, CHARLES BRYAN: Electrical Injuries.in CRITICAL CARE, 3RD ED. Lippincott Williams &Wilkins, 1996