How does electric current cause death?

Answer 1

It stops the heart from beating.

Answer 2

QUESTION: How does electric current cause death?

C.Valliammal, Kanyakumari, T.N.

ANSWER : Electrocution depends on the amount of current that flows through or over the body. It may be determined by the formula CV/R, where CV is the current in volts and R is the resistance of the body in ohms. The flow of the current through the body is greater, if the voltage is high or if the resistance is low.

High voltages (higher tensions) may cause the person to be thrown, while lower tensions, around 240 volts, cause muscle contraction due to which the person holds on to the source of the current. This is also dangerous, because severity is directly proportional to the duration of current flow.

If the body is well insulated it does not conduct the current and no harm results. Dry skin offer high resistance but the resistance is diminished when the skin is moist or covered with sweat. Blood has a low resistance and as such within the body, electricity tends to be conducted along blood vessels.

The intense heat, which may results from flash over produces burns. High voltage burns may be very severe with charring of the body. If the area of contact is relatively large e.g. when a hot wire is grasped with a wet hand or when a person is electrocuted in a bathtub, death may occur without any visible skin burning.

Electrocution also depends on the path of the current in our body. Death is more likely to occur if the brain stem or heart is in the direct path of the current. Circuits from any of the limbs to the head involve the brain stem and upper cervical cord.Arm-to-arm circuit may also involve the upper cervical cord. In these cases, death probably occurs from paralysis of the medullary (respiratory) centers. Arm-to-arm or left arm to either leg circuits, involve the heart and death occurs either from ventricular fibrillation or cardiac arrest without fibrillation.

Answer 3

Electric current can cause death because your heart beat is based upon the movement of different ions. As the result, these ions create currents to keep the heart beating at the normal rate. So when you apply or create or add another current into the heart current -> you can create the abnormal heart beat -> so electrical current when applied inappropriately could lead to the heart either stop beating or beating out of rhythm which could result in death.

However, electric current can also be used to help reviving the heart when it stops beating.

Answer 4

It is beause of the dehydration that occurs. You might have heard of the heating effect in a conductor carrying current. The conductor is the human body and the heat generated will make the liquids evaporate and hence the body will become black because of this evaporation process thus making the person to die ultimately.

Answer 5

depending on the voltage and amperage it can destroy the nervous system and stop the electrical impulses which make the vital organs such as the heart beat,at the higher voltages it Fry's you like the microwave oven cooks meat,at lower voltages it disrupts the signals which tell the heart how to beat thus causing heart attack

Answer 6

Easy answer?
Muscles become tight and stiff due to the electron flow from the body to the ground. since the heart is part of muscles in your body it stops blood flow (stops pumping blood). then since there is no blood flow no oxigen is transported to the brain and the brain dies thus all signals sent from the brain to the body (signals that cause the functioning of body organs). followed by the rest of the body.

Answer 7

either severe burn or fibrillation,
if the voltage is really high like say a lightning bolt - you can get burned to death,
if the voltage is lower and it goes through the right path across your heart, it will mess up your heart's rhythm and cause it to fibrillate (rapidly contract without actually pumping blood) and u die

Answer 8

stick a fork into a socket