Isolated pulmonary hemorrhage after electric shock: a rare phenomenon

Submitted: January 5, 2023
Accepted: April 13, 2023
Published: July 28, 2023
Abstract Views: 276
PDF: 139
Publisher's note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Authors

Any type of contact with electricity of low or high voltage can cause injury to the human body, with a variable effect on the body. Low-voltage injury is quite common worldwide, but there is very little information present in the available literature. The degree of organ damage depends on many factors, which include the duration of electric current exposure, current type, and nature of the affected tissue. The most common presentations are muscle injury, hyperkalemia, pulmonary edema, and rarely isolated diffuse pulmonary hemorrhage. We present a case of bilateral pulmonary hemorrhage due to electric shock with no visible signs of damage to the chest wall when exposed to a 220 V shock. The diagnosis was confirmed by fresh hemoptysis, chest imaging that showed bilateral perihilar ground glass opacities, and bronchoscopy findings. Given a life-threatening condition, a timely diagnosis is required, as massive hemoptysis can occlude the airways, leading to hypoxia and mortality.

Dimensions

Altmetric

PlumX Metrics

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Citations

National Crime Records Bureau. Accidental deaths and suicides in India report 2020.
Truong T, Le TV, Smith DL, et al. Low-voltage electricity-induced lung injury. Respirol Case Rep 2018;6:e00292.
Masanès MJ, Gourbière E, Prudent J, et al. A high voltage electrical burn of lung parenchyma. Burns 2000;26:659-63.
Marques EG, Júnior GA, Neto BF, et al. Visceral injury in electrical shock trauma: proposed guideline for the management of abdominal electrocution and literature review. Int J Burns Trauma 2014;4:1-6.
Guimarães F, Camões J, Mesquita A, et al. R. A case report: low voltage electric injuries culminating in cardiac arrest and direct lung injury. Cureus 2020;12:e11261.
Schein RM, Kett DH, De Marchena EJ, Sprung CL. Pulmonary edema associated with electrical injury. Chest 1990;97:1248-50.
Lee J. Diffuse alveolar hemorrhage. Rahway, NJ, USA: Merck & Co., Inc.; 2021.
Karamanli H, Akgedik R. Lung damage due to low-voltage electrical injury. Acta Clin Belg 2017;72:349-51.

How to Cite

Singh, Devendra Kumar, Gaurav Pandey, Syed Haider Mehdi Rizvi, and Pankaj Kumar Singh. 2023. “Isolated Pulmonary Hemorrhage After Electric Shock: A Rare Phenomenon”. Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease 94 (1). https://doi.org/10.4081/monaldi.2023.2518.