Electric Burn Hazard

An electrical burn results when electricity passes through a person's body and causes rapid injury. Different from a burn from a heat or chemical source, electrical burns are likely to cause a greater amount of damage under the skin. Sometimes, this can result in both the burn victim and his or her physicians underestimating the severity of the injury.

The severity of an electrical burn depends on the path the current takes during an electrical shock. It is most common for the hands and arms or feet and legs to be affected by electrical burns, but in a severe electrical shock, these burns can occur anywhere in the body. When a person's body becomes part of an electrical circuit, the electricity has both a point of entry and a point of exit. These areas may be identifiable on the body. For example, the skin area around the point of entry tends be pressed in and leather-like, and the area around the point of exit is often more damaged and split open. Areas of internal burning are considerably more difficult to identify, leading to the risk of their being overlooked during medical treatment.

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