Synonyms
Electrical injury; Electrocution; Lightning injury
Definition
For the purposes of this entry, “electrical brain injury” (EBI) refers to cerebral damage, system dysfunction, or death sustained from direct or indirect exposure to an electric current or source. Following the conventions generally present in the literature, the term “electrical injury” (EI) is used to distinguish injuries due to man-made sources of electricity from natural sources, referred to as “lightning injury” (LI).
Historical Background
Records of electricity-related injuries related to natural phenomena date back to the beginning of recorded history in cultures across the globe. Injury sustained from man-made electrical power is understandably a more recent occurrence, as generated electricity is a relatively modern development.
An appreciation of the safety risks of electrical power grew as the technology to harness and apply electricity for commercial and residential use became more common in the middle...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References and Readings
Duff, K., & McCaffrey, R. (2001). Electrical injury and lightning injury: A review of their mechanisms and neuropsychological, psychiatric, and neurological sequelae. Neuropsychology Review, 11(2), 101–116.
Gatewood, M., & Zane, R. (2004). Lightning injuries. Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America, 22, 369–403.
Koumbourlis, A. (2002). Electrical injuries. Critical Care Medicine, 30(11), S424–S430.
Pliskin, N., Capelli-Schellpfeffer, M., Law, R., Malina, A., Kelley, K., & Lee, R. (1998). Neuropsychological symptom presentation after electrical injury. The Journal of Trauma, Injury, Infection, and Critical Care, 44(4), 709–715.
Pliskin, N., Ammar, A., Fink, J., Hill, K., Malina, A., Ramati, A., et al. (2006). Neuropsychological changes following electrical injury. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 12, 17–23.
Primeau, M., Engelstatter, G., & Bares, K. (1995). Behavioral consequences of lightning and electrical injury. Seminars in Neurology, 15(3), 279–285.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature
About this entry
Cite this entry
Hufford, B.J. (2018). Electrical Brain Injury. In: Kreutzer, J.S., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_237
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_237
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-57110-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-57111-9
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences