|
As surgeons from more and more specialties use monopolar and/or bipolar electrosurgery, the risk of electrosurgical burns increases. In laparoscopy, for example, electrosurgical burns account for 5.4% of all injuries, according to data compiled by the Physician Insurers Association of America. When you consider that an estimated 3 million laparoscopies will be performed annually in the United States by 2010 and that nearly nine out of 10 laparoscopic surgeons routinely use monopolar electrosurgery, electrosurgical safety becomes a primary concern.
Electrosurgical burns from active electrodes result in three different ways:
|
