Surgical laparoscopy, endoscopy & percutaneous techniques
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Surg Laparosc Endosc Percutan Tech · Apr 2015
Antenna coupling explains unintended thermal injury caused by common operating room monitoring devices.
Unintended thermal injury from patient monitoring devices (eg, electrocardiogram pads, neuromonitoring leads) results in third-degree burns. A mechanism for these injuries is not clear. The monopolar "bovie" emits radiofrequency energy that transfers to nearby, nonelectrically active cables or wires without direct contact by capacitive and antenna coupling. The purpose of this study was to determine if, and to what extent, radiofrequency energy couples to common patient monitoring devices. ⋯ Stray energy couples to commonly used patient monitoring devices resulting in potentially significant thermal injury. The handheld bovie cord transfers energy via antenna coupling to neuromonitoring leads that can raise tissue temperatures over 100°F (39°C) using standard settings. The most effective ways to decrease this energy coupling is to reduce generator power, increase the separation between wires, or utilize lower voltage energy devices such as ultrasonic or bipolar energy.