A new study suggesting Tasers pose little risk to those receiving the shocks has sparked further debate over their safety.
The research, which was presented at the American College of Emergency Physicians' Research forum in Seattle, arrives amid a number of high-profile reports of police incidents involving Tasers in recent weeks.
Lead study investigator Dr. William Bozeman, an emergency medicine specialist at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., emphasizes that, when used in appropriate situations, Tasers are much better than alternative means.
"This is the first real-world application study regarding the injury incurred by these weapons, because previous studies have encompassed either human volunteers or animals," he says.
In his research of 597 past situations in which Tasers were used by police officers, Bozeman found that serious injuries were rare, occurring only 0.3 percent of the time.
Bozeman adds that he was anticipating a higher level of injury -- injuries that might require hospital admission or incur long-term disability.
and
As of Nov. 4, Taser International cited 206 studies on electronic control devices, commonly known as Tasers. Most are favorable to the company. Taser devices have been used on more than 1.3 million people, according to company estimates. And while Amnesty International counts more than 340 deaths since 2001 in North America following police use of Tasers, that amounts to less than 0.03 percent of all Taser exposures
