ABSTRACT
The use of aluminium ladders around high voltage power lines has resulted in a significant number of electrical injuries and electrocutions. Workers often misjudge wire distances or lose control of fully extended ladders, thereby exposing themselves to electrocution hazard. High-voltage electrical burns of two workers using an aluminium ladder that contacted a high voltage power line are reported. The circumstances surrounding the injury, the clinical management of the case, and the methods of prevention are presented and discussed.
Subject(s)
Accidents, Occupational , Burns, Electric/pathology , Tars , Burns, Electric/etiology , Foot Injuries , Hand Injuries/etiology , Hand Injuries/pathology , Humans , Male , Middle AgedABSTRACT
A 37-year-old right-handed female sustained a minor electric shock to her right hand while changing a bulb in a Kodak Reliant Intelligent Microfilmer 2000. She noted a progressive onset of parasthesias of her right hand that became associated with throbbing pain at rest, as well as swelling and profound weakness of her hand during the next two months. Plethysmography demonstrated arterial vasoconstriction of her right hand. Her reflex sympathetic dystrophy was successfully treated with cervicothoracic sympathetic blocks.
