Massive Third-Degree Burns

Case of 46-year-old man burned in industrial accident

The Patient:

• 46-year-old male
• Shocked with more than 12,000 volts of electricity, 60 times the power in a home, while inside a generator

The Referral:

• Transported by paramedics to Lehigh Valley Hospital—Cedar Crest’s Regional Burn Center

The Work-Up:

• Experienced third-degree burns over 60 percent of his body
• During course of recovery, fought pneumonia, cardiac arrhythmias and major infections

The Treatment:

• Trauma physicians and burn specialists tended to life-threatening injuries
• Initially heavily sedated and immobilized
• Weekly surgeries. Four years post-injury, he had more than 57 surgeries.

The Prognosis:

• Initial prognosis was 10 percent chance of survival
• Patient’s last surgery was 2003
• Living in Macungie, Pa.

The Team:

• Lehigh Valley Health Network is Pennsylvania’s first and region's largest Level 1 Trauma Center and remains the region's only trauma center accredited to care for children.
• The health network has one of the nation's most advanced burn centers, and is one of 44 burn centers in the nation verified by the American Burn Association and American College of Surgeons.
• In 2008, the new Regional Burn Center opened in the Kasych Family Pavilion at Lehigh Valley Hospital—Cedar Crest. An 18-bed facility, it is twice the size of its former location. The center can care for as many as 1,100 patients annually.

This page last updated 4/7/09 11:24 AM