Current leakage in bipolar electrocoagulation.

Bipolar electrocoagulation has previously been shown to give a considerable amount of current leakage to ground from either of the two outputs. This might result in unwanted tissue destruction. Thus far, no standard has been proposed for current leakage to ground from the outputs of bipolar equipment. This study was performed to establish safe parameters for such leakage. To determine the limit for damage-no damage, monopolar stimulations were performed on the brain surface of dogs. Blood-brain barrier disturbance was used as an indicator of damage. The limit for acceptable current leakage was found to be about 10 to 15 mA. Most bipolar coagulators were found to exceed this value. The electrical data recorded in this study should be considered in the design of bipolar equipment for electrocoagulation.