Blood factors of Sus scrofa following a series of three TASER® electronic control device exposures

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2007.06.010Get rights and content

Abstract

In a previous study, 18 repeated exposures of anaesthetized swine to an electro-muscular incapacitating device (TASER International's ADVANCED TASER® X26 electronic control device) resulted in acidosis and increases in blood electrolytes. In the current study, experiments were performed to investigate effects of a more typical scenario of repeated exposures of the device on muscle contraction and changes in blood factors. Ten swine were exposed for 5 s, followed by a 5-s period of no exposure, three times. Selected blood factors were monitored for 3 h following exposure.

Transient increases in blood glucose, lactate, sodium, potassium, calcium, and pCO2 were consistent with previous reports in the literature dealing with studies of muscle stimulation or exercise. Blood pH was decreased immediately following exposure, but subsequently returned toward a normal level. Oxygen saturation (measured by pulse oximetry) was not changed significantly.

In conclusion, three repeated TASER device exposures had only transient effects on blood factors, which all returned to pre-exposure levels, with the exception of hematocrit (which remained elevated after 3 h). Since the increase in this factor was less than that which may occur after short periods of exercise, it is unlikely that this would be an indicator of any serious harm.

Introduction

Several reports of TASER® electronic control device1 use by law-enforcement personnel have involved repeated shots to a single individual in a short period of time (e.g., Ref. [1]). Jauchem et al. [2] published the first study of blood factor changes after such exposures in an animal model (swine). These experiments involved a relatively large number of TASER device exposures—18 within a 3-min period. Blood pH was significantly decreased for 1 h following exposure, but subsequently returned toward a normal level. Lactate was highly elevated, with a slow return toward baseline.

The present experiments were performed to investigate effects of a series of only three 5-s exposures of TASER International's ADVANCED TASER X26. Exposure in this manner represents a more typical scenario likely to be encountered by law-enforcement personnel. Muscle contraction and changes in blood factors were examined in anaesthetized swine.

Section snippets

Material and methods

Ten male domestic swine (Sus scrofa domestica) ranging in weight from 46 to 61 kg (mean ± standard error of the mean, 50.8 ± 1.6 kg) were used for these studies. Techniques of animal preparation, anaesthesia, physiological measurements, blood sampling, and analysis of blood factors have been presented previously [2]. Animals were anaesthetized with an intramuscular injection of tiletamine HCl and zolazepam HCl (Telazol®, 6 mg kg−1). The opioid buprenorphine (0.005–0.2 mg−1 kg−1) was administered to

Muscle contraction

All four limbs of each animal exhibited extension even though the electrodes were positioned in areas at some distances from the limbs. Peak values of force generated by the leg muscles (averaged across all limbs) for the first, second, and third TASER device exposures (5 s each) were 230 ± 8, 242 ± 6, and 218 ± 8 N, respectively.

Details of leg movements, such as moment of inertia and joint angular velocity, were not evaluated in this study. By simple visual observation of the animals, however, it was

Muscle contraction

Peak values of force (between approximately 200 and 250 N) generated by the leg muscles were similar to those in the previous study of repeated X26 device exposures [2]. For comparative purposes, we note that peak anterior-cruciate-ligament forces as high as 150 N have been reported in another species of quadruped (goat) during trotting [5].

Glucose, lactate and pH

Bunger et al. [6] reported very little change in blood glucose of swine after exercise (10 min on treadmill at 78 m/min). The increase in blood glucose in the

Conclusion

Three repeated TASER device exposures had only transient effects on blood factors, which all returned to pre-exposure levels, with the exception of hematocrit (which remained elevated after 3 h). Since the increase in this factor was less than that which may occur after short periods of exercise, it is unlikely that this would be an indicator of any serious harm.

Acknowledgments

We thank William D. Snyder, DVM, Major, Veterinary Corps, U.S. Army, and Specialist Nancy Meadows for surgically implanting the jugular venous catheters. We thank Specialist Michael Palmerin and Sergeant Bennie H. Mitchell, U.S. Army, for anaesthesia maintenance, and David Fines and Melissa Tarango, Advanced Information Engineering Services (AIES) (A General Dynamics Company), for technical assistance during the experiments.

This work was supported by the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Program, Marine

References (23)

  • S. Ahmadizad et al.

    The acute effects of resistance exercise on the main determinants of blood rheology

    J. Sports Sci.

    (2005)
  • Cited by (39)

    • Restraint Techniques, Injuries, and Death: Conducted Energy Devices

      2015, Encyclopedia of Forensic and Legal Medicine: Second Edition
    • Biases in TASER research

      2012, American Heart Journal
    • Pathophysiologic changes due to TASER® devices versus excited delirium: Potential relevance to deaths-in-custody?

      2011, Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine
      Citation Excerpt :

      Other investigators have found that exhaustive muscle contractions (e.g., 50 maximal contractions of elbow flexor muscles66) result in large increases in blood CPK. Significant increases in serum total CPK and in the CPK-MM fraction have occurred after 30- or 60-s ECD exposures,13 and even after only three 5-s applications of a TASER X26 ECD,67 to anesthetized swine. Sloane and Vilke68 suggested that increases in CPK would not be surprising after ECD application, since massive contraction of muscle could cause such changes.

    View all citing articles on Scopus
    View full text