Citation

Bozeman WP, Barnes DG, Winslow JE, Johnson JC, Phillips CH, Alson R. Emerg. Med. J. 2009; 26(8): 567-570.

Affiliation

WFU Department of Emergency Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston Salem, NC 27106-1089, USA. wbozeman@wfubmc.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2009, BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1136/emj.2008.063560

PMID

19625551

Abstract

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the immediate cardiac and cardiovascular effects of Taser X26 conducted electrical weapon (CEW) exposure in human volunteers, including heart rhythm, rate and blood pressure. METHODS: Volunteer police officers participating in CEW training and testing each underwent a 5, 3 and 1 s exposure to the Taser X26 CEW. Continuous electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring was performed before, during and after each exposure. Blood pressures were measured at rest before and within 1 minute after each exposure. Paired sample t-test analysis and confidence interval calculations were performed. RESULTS: 84 Taser exposures were monitored among 28 subjects (24 men, four women) with an average age of 34 years (range 24-46, SD 5.6). No cardiac dysrhythmias or aberrantly conducted beats were seen. Mean heart rate increased by 10.9 beats per minute (bpm) (95% CI 8.2 to 13.7) from 121.7 to 132.6 (p<0.001). The QRS and QTc cardiac intervals did not change significantly. Mean blood pressure increased from 138.6/82.8 mm Hg at rest to 145.8/85.6 mm Hg after the standard 5-s CEW discharge. CONCLUSION: CEW exposure produced no detectable dysrhythmias and a statistically significant increase in heart rate. Overall, Taser CEW exposure appears to be safe and well tolerated from a cardiovascular standpoint in this population. This study increases the cumulative human subject experience of CEW exposure with continuous ECG monitoring and includes 28 full 5-s exposures.

Language: en