Abstract
New critical applications for electrosurgery are placing demands beyond the current state of understanding of the molecular-level mechanisms inherent to electrosurgical coagulation. The objective of this study is to correlate the time evolution of histomorphological changes in tissue subjected to electrosurgical coagulation with the time evolution of certain physical properties, e.g., electrical impedance and temperature. Our techniques have the potential of relating changes in cellular ultrastructure to measured physical properties. We have compared the temporal and spatial profiles of tissue damage induced by a blade electrode with damage produced by a uniform electric field in a model parallel plate electrode configuration. Calculation of the electric field near the real blade electrode enabled us to correlate tissue damage due to the blade with that produced in the model electrode system. In the latter system, a computer-automated, real-time measurement of tissue impedance and temperature was made during the coagulation process. The results are interpreted with respect to the observed time sequence histological changes. These results provide an indication of certain cellular and ionic processes involved in the electrocoagulation process, and also suggest that certain changes in molecular conformation may be quantified by means of such physical measurements.
Published Version
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