Originally published September 23 2005
Taser stun gun blamed in teenager's near-fatal heart disturbance
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Two doctors at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago wrote a letter that was published in The New England Journal of Medicine in which they claim that a teenager went into ventricular fibrillation, a usually fatal heart disturbance, after being shot with a taser by Chicago police, The New York Times reports.
A shock from a Taser stun gun caused a teenager in Chicago to go into ventricular fibrillation, a usually fatal heart disturbance, according to a letter published yesterday in The New England Journal of Medicine.
Taser International, which makes the guns, has said that Tasers cannot cause fibrillation, a condition in which the heart loses the ability to pump blood.
In the Chicago case, which occurred last February, the teenage crime suspect received immediate medical attention and survived after the police shot him with the Taser.
An electrocardiogram or heart rhythm test, administered to the teenager, proved that he suffered fibrillation, Dr. Franklin said.
The case illustrates the risks of Tasers as well as the need for police officers to carry automated defibrillators, which put out a large electric shock that restores the heart's rhythm, Dr. Franklin said.
In response to the letter, Taser forwarded an e-mail message from Dr. Richard M. Luceri, director of the Arrhythmia Center at Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in which he said: "The conclusion implied by the authors is purely speculative and not backed by scientific evidence."
About 130 people have died after being shocked by a Taser, including nearly 70 in the last 12 months, according to Amnesty International, which has called for a moratorium on the use of the guns.
In most cases, autopsy reports have not found the Taser to be the cause of death.
In 2003 and 2004, use of Tasers spread rapidly among American police departments as officers sought ways to control suspects without fighting with them or using firearms.
But sales of the guns have plunged this year amid safety questions.
Repeated Taser shocks may cause the blood to become highly acidic and the body to overheat, both potentially fatal conditions, scientists say.
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