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PubMed2003

The survival of ingested Serratia marcescens in houseflies (Musca domestica L.) after electrocution with electric fly killers.

Electric fly killers (EFKs) are commonly used to control flying insects that enter food establishments. For establishment of the incidence of pathogen-bearing insects in food establishments, insect samples obtained from EFK trays could be used. The principal difficulty with this approach is that the survival time of microorganisms on or within insect corpses after electrocution is unknown. This study determined the survival of Serratia marcescens (as a representative of the enteric bacteria) within houseflies following their electrocution by a commercial EFK. S. marcescens was successfully ingested by houseflies and survived on and within the corpses after electrocution for up to 5 weeks. Maximal levels of bacteria were recovered 24 h postelectrocution. The study also demonstrates the ability of ingested S. marcescens to out-compete resident microbial flora within houseflies. The findings are intended to pave the way for further research to determine the incidence of pathogen-laden flying insects in food establishments.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Killing of flies in electrocuting insect traps releases bacteria and viruses.

Electrocuting insect traps (EIT) are popular devices frequently used by homeowners and food handlers attempting to localize the control of flying insects, including the ubiquitous house fly (Musca domestica L.). The traps contain a visual attractant and a high-voltage metal grid. Upon contact with the grids, the insects are disintegrated by the high voltage. As part of a systematic evaluation of EITs and their role in infectious disease spread, we quantitated spread of bacteria and a bacterial virus during electrocution of house flies. We loaded flies with Serratia marcescens or with the Escherichia coli phage PhiX174 and placed sprayed or fed flies into a room containing an EIT. While flies were being electrocuted, liberated particles and bacteria were assayed via agar plates or via air filtration samplers. Sprayed flies released one of every 10,000 of the added bacteria or viruses, and fed flies released one of every 1,000,000 of the consumed bacteria or viruses. Results of our studies suggest EITs could play a role in the spread of infectious disease agents, but the potential is influenced by the insect's route of contamination.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Cardiac abnormalities demonstrated postmortem in four cases of accidental electrocution and their potential significance relative to nonfatal electrical injuries of the heart.

Death from accidental electrocution is generally thought to be due to an arrhythmia, but little is known of the anatomic changes in the heart and almost nothing is known about the conduction system itself. We have studied the hearts of four men who died from electrical accidents and directed particular attention to the coronary arteries, conduction system, and neural structures of the heart. In every heart there was widespread focal necrosis involving all the myocardium and including the specialized tissue of the sinus and atrioventricular nodes. In all four hearts there was contraction band necrosis of smooth muscle cells in the tunica media of the coronary arteries. Cells in the His bundle and bundle branches were less affected. Neural structures of the heart were minimally involved. We also sought any cardiac changes of a chronic nature that may have predisposed to a fatal arrhythmia. Two of the four hearts were slightly enlarged, and increased myocardial mass predisposes to ventricular fibrillation and makes it more difficult to revert. One heart exhibited focal fibromuscular dysplastic narrowing of small coronary arteries, including that artery supplying the coronary chemoreceptor. Another heart had fatty deposition extensively present within and around the sinus and atrioventricular nodes. Thus numerous abnormalities specifically attributable to the electrocution help explain the pathogenesis of the electrical instability known to occur. But in three of the four hearts there were also chronic abnormalities favoring electrical instability but predating the electrocution.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

The application of a variable-pressure scanning electron microscope with energy dispersive X-ray microanalyser to the diagnosis of electrocution: a case report.

We describe here a case of accidental electrocution. A 48-year-old male was found dead in his room. At autopsy, there was a current mark on the right thumb and big toe. Histological examination revealed that the skin wound had the characteristics of a current mark, including vacuolation and elongation of the cell nuclei. We could also identify titanium metallization on the skin surface of the current mark using a variable-pressure scanning electron microscope (VP-SEM) equipped with energy dispersive X-ray microanalyser (EDX). The autopsy finding and the subsequent investigation support the conclusion that the cause of his death was electrocution. Our result shows that the VP-SEM with EDX is a useful tool for the forensic diagnosis of electrocution.

Accidents, Home↗
PubMed1986

Electrocution of pigs infected with notifiable diseases.

In order to combat certain notifiable diseases eradication programs have been developed, which include the destruction of an infected or suspected herd. Experiments were conducted to develop a method for euthanasia of large numbers of pigs. The electrocution experiments under laboratory conditions were performed in a wooden sided box with a steel floor and a curtain of chains. When the pigs touched the chain curtain with their noses, they received a current flow which lasted for more than 2 seconds, and they developed cardiac arrest or fibrillation. The pigs which touched the chain curtain with their rumps vocalised and became recumbent immediately. An automatic electrocution unit was constructed with a conveyor (negative electrode) and 3 curtains of chains (positive electrodes). Over 6000 pigs infected with a notifiable disease were killed with the apparatus. Only 2 piglets younger than 1 week old were not killed by the current (1000 V, greater than 2 s.). From the point of view of animal welfare the automatic electrocution apparatus is an efficient method for killing large numbers of pigs (older than 1 week of age) infected with a notifiable disease.

Animal Welfare↗
PubMed2004

Two cases of suicidal electrocution.

Two cases of suicidal electrocution are presented: one using a household lamp, the other using a homemade electrocution machine. The mechanisms of death and the histologic changes in electrocution are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Fatal occupational electrocutions in the United States.

INTRODUCTION: The highest proportions of fatal occupational electrocutions have occurred among those employed in the electrical trades and in the construction and manufacturing industries. METHODS: Data from 1992 through 1999 were obtained from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries. RESULTS: Occupational electrocution deaths occurred almost entirely among males, with the highest rates among those aged 20-34 and among whites and American Indians. They were highest during the summer months, in the South, and in establishments employing 10 or fewer workers. The highest rates occurred in the construction, mining, and agriculture, forestry, and fishing industries and among trades associated with these industries. CONCLUSIONS: Electrocution continues to be a significant cause of occupational death. Workers need to be provided with safety training and employers, particularly smaller employers, persuaded of the need for safety training.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed1992

Work-related electrocutions involving portable power tools and appliances.

Portable power tools and appliances can be identified as the source of injury in approximately 9% of occupational electrocutions. A search of fatality records for 1984 through 1986 in National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) data bases identified 102 electrocutions involving portable appliances and tools that used 110-volt AC and 33 deaths involving welding equipment, which usually operates on 220-volt AC or higher. Of these 102 deaths, 51 occurred in the construction industry, 13 in services, 13 in manufacturing, and 25 in other industries. Plumbing contractors (Standard Industrial Classification [SIC] 1711) had the largest number of deaths (15) in construction. Powered hand-tools were involved in 58 deaths, with electric drills (23) and saws (13) the two largest classes. Proper provision of ground-fault circuit interrupter protection, particularly at temporary work sites, could have prevented most of the deaths from 110-volt AC. Engineering controls for preventing electrocution from portable arc-welding equipment should be evaluated.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed1992

Electrocution: a review of 155 cases with emphasis on human factors.

A review of 155 cases of electrocution were investigated to determine the role of human factors, such as carelessness and intoxication, as contributions. The cases were retrieved by computer coding from the repository of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, covering the period 1955-1988. The cases are predominantly of military origin. Cases were divided into low-voltage electrocution (N = 47), high-voltage electrocution (N = 79), lightning strikes (N = 16), and unclassified (N = 13). For each group, data is presented on the circumstances of the incident and the pathologic findings. Blatant carelessness, misuse or improper maintenance of equipment, and intoxication are analyzed as contributory factors.

Accidents, Home↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Classification of fatal occupational electrocutions.

The objective of this study was to describe fatal occupational electrocutions that occurred in Quebec between 1981 and 1988 and propose a classification suitable for setting up a prevention agenda. Of 63 fatalities, an investigation report was available in 57 (90.5%). They all occurred among males, 70.2% of whom were under the age of 35; 49.1% were performing a task related to the construction sector. A principal factor analysis allowed classification of 90.2% of the fatalities in two categories: victims assigned to electrical tasks indoors and those assigned to non-electrical tasks outdoors. The first group (56.5% of the cases) were electrocuted by direct contact with voltage less than 10 Kvolts and the second by the intermediary of a vector with voltage above 10 Kvolts. The identification of the two patterns of electrocutions provided an additional argument for shifting recommendations for prevention from educating the workers, to reducing the electrical hazards at the source.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed1986

[Problems in the evaluation of electrocution fatalities in the bathtub].

Forty-eight cases of electrocution in the bathtub are reported which were recorded in Düsseldorf and Göttingen from 1972 to 1986; 19 cases were established to be suicides, with a sex ratio of 1:3 in favor of females. Marks of electricity were found in 8 cases. Five other cases were distinguished by linear marks indicating the water level, and in 10 cases a peculiar restriction of the postmortem hypostasis on the submersed areas could be seen. We presume from our own material that the latter findings can be easily ignored. As linear, circumscribed lividity could not be detected in bath deaths without electricity, it may be a specific finding. We recommend that more attention be paid to this phenomen. In all of our cases, 220 V current was involved, i.e., the usual household supply. The calculated amperage was about 100 to 250 mA, which means that ventricular fibrillation occurred within a few seconds. In 14 cases foam was established at the mouth and the nostrils, or in the air passages. We presume that, in these cases, death by electrocution was finally superimposed by drowning without developing the typical emphysema aquosum.

Accidents, Home↗
PubMed2001

Prevalence of potential risk factors in victims of electrocution.

OBJECTIVE: To identify risk factors of fatal arrhythmia following electrical shock, by comparing the prevalence of transthoracic current, tetany, decreased skin resistance because of wet extremities, skin burns and heart disease in victims of electrocution with instant as opposed to delayed death. DESIGN: Retrospective case-control study, based on the charts from the coroner's office. RESULTS: A total of 124 deaths from electrocution occurred between 1987 and 1992. One victim presumably died from delayed arrhythmia and was excluded from the study. Twenty victims had decreased skin resistance because of wet extremities and five had tetany. Autopsy revealed coronary heart disease in 21 cases, and burns in 109; 10 did not have any skin lesion. There was no difference in risk factors between those who died instantly presumably from arrhythmia (n=114) and those who died later from other causes (n=9). CONCLUSION: No differences in risk factors were found between victims who died immediately from arrhythmia following electrical shock and those died later from other causes.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Bilateral hearing loss following electrocution.

Electrocution is a rare cause of sensorineural deafness. We describe and discuss the first reported case in this country of domestic electrocution resulting in a bilateral sensorineural deafness.

Accidents, Home↗
PubMed1993

Solar-powered electrocuting trap for controlling house flies and stable flies (Diptera: Muscidae).

A portable trap was constructed that was visually attractive to house flies, Musca domestica L., and stable flies, Stomoxys calcitrans (L.), outdoors. The trap was made of a white and yellow pyramid placed on top of a white vertical base that had large cutouts in each side. Attracted flies were killed by means of solar-powered electrocuting grids. Three traps killed an average of 1,360 house flies and 1,190 stable flies per day at a manure dump and were effective in attracting flies under both cool (< 23 degrees C) and warm (> 30 degrees C) temperatures. Both species of flies were most attracted to the eastern side of the trap, but house flies preferred yellow in cool mornings and white in warm afternoons. When air temperatures were > 30 degrees C, both house flies and stable flies went into the shaded base of the trap or into tunnels. Most house flies were killed on the pyramidal top of the trap, whereas most stable flies were killed on the vertical base. Opaque fiberglass tunnels with central electrocuting grids were simpler and cheaper, although less effective, for stable flies.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Suicidal electrocution in a bathtub.

A case of suicidal electrocution in a filled bathtub is presented with a discussion of the mechanism of electrocution in water. A modern safety device, the Ground Fault Interruptor Circuit, is also described.

Electric Injuries↗
PubMed2001

Internal current mark in a case of suicide by electrocution.

Fatalities caused by electrocution often lack specific morphologic evidence. Investigation of the death scene along with technical inspection of the electrical apparatus may help in clarifying the cause and manner of death. Cutaneous current marks may be the only sign of low voltage associated fatalities. The authors report a case of an electrician who committed suicide by electrocution using a time switch after oral ingestion of diazepam. Electrodes (coins) were fixed with adhesive tape at the height of the heart to the front and back of the left side of the chest. Autopsy revealed a blackish linear mark on the pleura parietalis of the inner side of the thoracic cavity, connecting the cutaneous current marks. Current-related and heat-related changes, such as hypercontraction bands of the intercostal muscles and coagulative changes of the perineurium of peripheral nerves, were found at histologic examination. Taking into consideration that the body had been under the influence of low-voltage current for 7 days, the morphologic alteration on the pleura parietalis was in accordance with an internal current mark, indicating the main route of current flow through the body. To the authors' knowledge, such a current-related phenomenon has not been reported to occur on an inner body surface before.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Suicide by electrocution.

Electrocution is a rare mode of suicide. In Sri Lanka, where the suicide rate is extremely high, ingestion of liquid pesticides is the commonest method used. The case of a 34-year-old labourer of the Electricity Board, who committed suicide using 220-240 volt domestic electricity supply is described. He had been suffering from a depressive illness for some time. Suicide by electrocution has not been documented in Sri Lanka before.

Adult↗