The secondary mechanism sets in minutes after injury and lasts for weeks or months (Tanhoffer et al. 2007). During this phase the area of trauma distinctly enlarges. The secondary phase features a continuation of some events from the acute phase – electrolyte shifts, oedema, and necrotic cell death - as well as novel ones, including the formation of free radicals, delayed calcium influx, immune system response or
and inflammation, and apoptotic cell death (Liverman et al. 2005).