title: Rehabilitation of burn injured patients following lightning and electrical trauma.
abstract: Electrical burn injuries are complicated because of damage to many structures including: blood vessels, muscles, nerves, tendons, bone and skin. Surgeons must confront many problems such as wound healing coverage, scarring, loss of nerve and tendons, progressive joint stiffness and amputation. The goals of burn therapists are to achieve wound healing, functional recovery, and good cosmetic results. Rehabilitation is both preventive and therapeutic and is a fundamental part of managing these patients. In this article, rehabilitation is discussed with emphasis on the following: pain management, wound coverage, positioning, splinting, and exercises (range-of-motion and ambulation). The treatment and prevention of hypertrophic scarring is evaluated. Finally, the use of engineering and assistive technologies for rehabilitation of the electrical burn injured patient is discussed. Successful management of electrical burn injured patients involves communication among the different burn specialists, such as surgeons, anesthesiologists, neurologists, nurses, and kinesitherapists; engineers from the garments/prostheses companies; psychologists; and the patient him/herself.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, Burn Center, University Hospital, Gent, Belgium. selvaggigennaro@yahoo.it
authors.forename: Gennaro
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Selvaggi
authors.forename: Stan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Monstrey
authors.forename: Koen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Van Landuyt
authors.forename: Moustapha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hamdi
authors.forename: Phillip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Blondeel
mesh_terms: D002058:Burns, Electric / Q000209:etiology* / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D017439:Cicatrix, Hypertrophic / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D003286:Contracture / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D015168:Lightning Injuries / Q000150:complications* / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D014945:Wound Healing