"Train surfers": analysis of 23 cases of electrical burns caused by high tension railway overhead cables.
The term "train surfers" describes a group of adolescents from the outskirts of the city of Rio de Janeiro, who are compelled by the overcrowded railway trains to travel on the roofs of the wagons. Collision with electrical high-tension wires is a relatively frequent occurrence, causing extensive and complex injuries. This study analyzes this clinical and surgical phenomenon which has caused over 100 fatalities in more than 200 registered accidents over the past 10 years.
Sternick
I
I
Department of Plastic Surgery, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Gomes
R D
RD
Serra
M C
MC
Radwanski
H N
HN
Pitanguy
I
I
D000059:Accidents; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001452:Balneology; D001830:Body Surface Area; D001938:Brazil; D002058:Burns, Electric / Q000145:classification / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy; D002423:Cause of Death; D002648:Child; D003646:Debridement; D004560:Electricity; D004632:Emergency Medical Services; D005440:Fluid Therapy; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D011890:Railroads; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate