Cataratas: Una rara complicación de quemaduras eléctricas

Abstract

Introduction: Electric burns are complex lesions with multiple complications. Cataracts are an infrequent complication. There are several case reports, but very few information of its phisiopatology and clinical characteristics in the surgical literature. Objectives: To report the incidence and characteristics of patients admitted to Hospital del Trabajador de Santiago (HTS) with electric burns and secondary cataracts. And review the literature. Patients and Methods: All patients admitted to the HTS with electric burns between 01/01/1999 and 01/01/2009 were included. Their electronic files were reviewed, and their data were tabulated in an Excel sheet. The literature about electric burns and cataracts was reviewed. Results: There were 977 patients admitted with electric burns in the last 10 years, 3 (0.3%) of them developed secondary cataracts. Ll were male, 33, 36 and 64 years old. Two of them had facial burns, only one had the description of the voltage (13.500 v). The time between the burn and the diagnostic of cataract was 6 month, 2 and 4 years. In two cases the cataracts were bilateral and in one case it was unilateral and right sided. All patients received surgical treatment with satisfactory outcomes. Conclusions: Cataracts secondary to electric burns are infrequent. We need more numerous series, with accurate registers to establish some prognostic factors. It is important to have in mind this complication and actively look for it in patients that present with electric burns.