(A topic I found interesting in my physical diagnosis course during my 4th year of medical school…and subsequently wrote a little summary of…at this point many of the image links are broken, but they were all found using google images. I also apologize for the formatting, when I imported this post from my old blog some of the formatting got messed up. If you have an interest in emergency medicine related topics and stores, please check out the main page)
The mark is named for Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742-1799), a German scientist and professor of experimental physics. At Gottingen University, Lichtenberg did research in a wide variety of fields, including geophysics, volcanology, meterology, chemistry, astronomy, and mathematics. As a physicist, he is most remembered for his investigations in electricity, especially for discovering the branching patterns of electricty upon discharge. At one point he built a gigantic electrophorus and by discharging a high voltage near an insulator, he was able to record strange tree like patterns in dust, figures which would later become known as Lichtenberg figures.
Of note, with this priciple he also discovered the most basic form of modern xerography now seen in today’s modern copy machines. He also proposed the standardized paper system used all over the world today, with A4 is the most commonly used size.
When Lichtenberg’s figures were first discovered, it was thought that the characteristic shapes might help to reveal the nature of positive and negative electric “fluids”. Although Lichtenberg only studied 2 dimensional figures, modern high voltage researchers study both 2D and 3D figures. Through subsequent study, Lichtenberg figures are now know to be examples of fractals, a geometric figure that repeats itself under several levels of magnification.
Approximately 70-90% of individuals struck by lightning survive, but as many of three quarters of these survivors may have permanent sequela. The injuries associated with lightning can invole the cardiorespiratory, neurologic, cutaneous, opthalmologic and otologic systems. Interestingly, lightning injury associated with indoor telephone use during lightning storms has been reported. One Australian study identified up to 80 such injuries yearly.
References: (I can’t figure out how to remove the highlighting from some of these, sorry. )
Wetli CV. Keraunopathology: an analysis of 45 fatalities. Am J Forens Med Pathol. 1996; 17:89–98.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Lightning-associated injuries and deaths among military personnel—United States 1998–2001. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 51: 859, 2002.
Lightning Safety Facts. U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Available at:http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/.
Bartholome CW, Jacoby WD, Ramchand SC. Cutaneous manifestations of lightning injury. Arch Dermatol 1975;111:1466-8.
Cooper MA. Lightning injuries: prognostic signs for death. Ann Emerg Med1980;9:134-8.Muehlberger T, Vogt PM, Munster AM: The long-term consequences of lightning injuries. Burns27: 829, 2001.Edlich R, Drake D. Burns, Lightning Injuries. http://www.emedicine.com. http://www.emedicine.com/plastic/topic517.htm
Andrews CJ: Telephone-related lightning injury. Med J Aust 157: 823, 1992.Resnik, Barry I. M.D.; Wetli, Charles V. M.D. Lichtenberg Figures The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology Issue: Volume 17(2), June 1996, pp 99-102
Ghezzi KT. Lightning injuries: a unique treatment challenge. Postgrad Med 1989;85:197-208.
Ohashi M, Kitagawa N, Ishikawa T. Lightning injury caused by discharges accompanying flashovers: a clinical and experimental study of death and survival.Burns 1986;12:496