Premium
Life after Electrical Injury: Risk Factors for Psychiatric Sequelae
Author(s) -
KELLEY KATHLEEN M.,
TKACHENKO TATIANA A.,
PLISKIN NEIL H.,
FINK JOSEPH W.,
LEE RAPHAEL C.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1999.tb07970.x
Subject(s) - psychiatry , medicine , injury prevention , poison control , psychology , medical emergency
Long‐term cognitive and emotional deficits have been commonly reported in electrical injury (EI) survivors. However, it remains undetermined what factors may lead to the development of such effects in some patients and not in others. In this study, we hypothesized that certain elements of subjective EI experience may predict specific psychiatric sequelae. A group of 73 postacute EI patients were included in this retrospective study. Statistical associations were examined between major psychiatric diagnoses (posttraumatic stress disorder and major depression) and such EI descriptors as having experienced “no‐let‐go” or having been knocked away on contact, as well as loss of consciousness or altered states of consciousness at the scene of the accident (including amnesia for the event). The study results will help physicians determine which patients may be at increased risk of developing psychiatric symptoms and address these issues as part of their total rehabilitation plan.