Bipolar versus monopolar electrosurgery: clinical applications.

In all cases, however, certain technical goals are essential, including control of hemorrhage, visibility, absence of harmful effects to the surgical site and adjacent tissues, postoperative comfort, and rapid healing. One modality that has been used historically to accomplish certain periodontal surgical procedures is electrosurgery. Conventional electrosurgery devices are monopolar, whereby tissue is cut by means of an advancing spark with the patient grounded and in the electrical loop. This modality has certain clinical disadvantages, including sparking, spread of the electrical current, and potential thermal damage to the tissues because of heat generation, which have limited its application.