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Thecurrent of injury – also known as thedemarcation current,hermann's demarcation current[1] orinjury potential[2] – is theelectric current from the central part of the body to an injurednerve ormuscle, or to another injured excitabletissue. The injured tissue has a negative voltage compared to the central part of the body.[3]
The concept originates from the research ofCarlo Matteucci andEmil du Bois-Reymond in the mid-19th century. It has later occasionally been used in physiology textbooks,[4] but is now mostly used in connection with heart damages (as listed in e.g. the index ofGuyton'sTextbook of Medical Physiology). Such manifestations in the heart may be seen in theelectrocardiogram asOsborn waves.
It has been found byElmer J. Lund that establishing an artificialelectrical field causing a current mimicking the current of injury could facilitateregeneration.[5] This potential for aregeneration therapy was further studied byRobert O. Becker, who described this work in his bookThe Body Electric. He found that the current of injury runs through theperineurium – through themyelin sheaths of theperipheral nerves.[3]
