Electrical current injury shows no specific acute histological changes in peripheral nerves and their vascular supply

The type and extent of histological changes after acute electrical injury are a matter of interest and debate. To investigate the acute changes associated with electric current, we used an animal model consisting of 21 healthy adult male and female New Zealand White conventionally bred domestic rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) with an average weight of 3.0 kg. The animals were randomly divided into three groups: Group 1 - controls (5 animals), Group 2 - exposed to low-voltage current (8 animals), and Group 3 - exposed to high-voltage current (8 animals). Electrodes were placed on shaved areas on the right hind limb. Immediately after current application, animals were sacrificed using high doses of anesthetic. Next, sites of current application, femoral neurovascular bundles, femoral muscle samples (including its fascia), heart muscle samples, and abdominal aorta samples were collected for study. The samples were then processed for histological, histochemical, and immunohistochemical examination. Compared with the control group, no acute changes were found in the collected samples, except for the areas of current application where the thermal effect of current applications were observed. Post-current tissue damage described in the literature is not useful for immediate diagnosis. Diagnosis is often only possible after several tens of minutes to several hours, with observed tissue injury presumably resulting from electroporation or as part of tissue repair processes. We concluded that acute tissue changes after electric current injury are not specific except for heat-related skin and soft tissue changes at the point of electrocution.