Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
TURKISH JOURNAL OF PLASTIC SURGERY, sa.1, ss.40-46, 2007 (ESCI)
It is commonly accepted that the main reason of the occurrence of progressive tissue necrosis after electrical injury is the destruction of microvascular circulation. The morphological and functional integrity of erythrocytes is very important for sufficient microvascular circulation as much as the integrity of blood vessels. In this study, we investigated the changes in the blood rheology, which are believed to exist in the pathophysiology of a thermal burn, the effect of free oxygen radicals on rheology and the relationship of these with progressive tissue damage. We examined, blood viscosity, plasma viscosity, hematocrit and erythrocyte deformability index (EDI) to identify the blood rheology. In order to examine the free oxygen radicals and lipid peroxidation, malondialdehyde and nitric oxide which are the end products of lipid peroxidation are studied in plasma. To determine the effects of free oxygen radicals on erythrocytes, the activities of superoxide dismutase, glutathion peroxidase, and glutathione reductase which are the erythrocyte anti-oxidant enzymes. Also tissue edema determination carried out on the extremities that exposed to electrical injury. In the study, we found that the amount of free oxygen radicals increased and that the anti-oxidant system was insufficient. We concluded that this could be related to the changes found in the blood rheology, particularly EDI, after an electric burn. When the deformation ability of erythrocytes decreases, the microvascular system breaks down. This negative state, is not only one of the factors which explains progressive tissue damage after an electric burn but should also be taken as an independent variable. The results were parallel to the tissue edema at extremities showed that the changes in blood rheology and free oxygen radicals which occurs the lipid peroxidation had effect in progressive tissue damage.