Context

Electrical injury and lightning strike cause death as a result of inducing ventricular arrhythmia or asystole. Tetany of respiratory muscles can also induce hypoxic cardiac arrest. Much of the morbidity resulting from electrical injury and lightning strike relates to burns and neurological dysfunction. Below is a list of basic definitions.

Electric current: the flow of electrons through a substance.

Electrocution: death as a result of exposure to electric current.

Electrical injury: Tissue damage as a result of exposure to electrical current.

Electrical burns: Thermal injury with tissue necrosis due to the heat generated by electrical current.

Electrical shock: The violent response to electric current exposure often characterised by involuntary muscle contraction.