Issues of electric shock in forensic medical practice.

Abstract

The authors summarize the current state of knowledge of electric shock as a minority group of injuries in forensic practice. Initially, they deal with electric current as a physical quantity and its effect on the human body, how it enters and moves in the body, which tissues due to their electrical activity and properties are the best conductors and which, on the contrary, due to their high resistance, practically do not conduct current. Subsequently, different pathways of current passage through the body are mentioned, leading to different types of damage, the most serious of which appears to be damage to the cardiovascular system, which can lead to immediate death due to disturbed heart rhythm with subsequent arrest, but is also likely to leave permanent effects leading to late health complications. The effect of electric current at the cellular level is demonstrated in experimental animal models exposed to both low- and high-voltage electric current, with damage described not only at the site of entry but also by microscopic examination in organs distant from the site of direct electric current. Since the effect of electric current on the organism is not fully understood and experimental studies have produced results indicating damage mainly to the cardiovascular system, this opens up certain possibilities for improving not only the diagnosis of deaths due to electric shock but also the follow-up care of patients who survive these injuries.