Study of electrocution deaths in Puducherry

Abstract

Introduction: Electrocution deaths are not uncommon and most of the cases are accidental in nature. The study has been carried out to find out the incidence of electrocution deaths in Puducherry. Only few studies were done on electrocution deaths in Puducherry. Objectives: To analyze the frequency, profile and pattern of injuries among electrocution fatalities in Puducherry. Materials and Method: The study was carried out by retrospectively collecting the 2-years data of all the medicolegal autopsy cases of electrocution related deaths brought to the Mortuary of Indira Gandhi Medical College & Research Institute, Puducherry from January 2015 to December 2016. The data thus collected were recorded in a proforma and analyzed. Results and Observations: Electrocution deaths accounted for 0.9% (23 cases) of all the medicolegal autopsies (n=2607) conducted in our autopsy center during the study period. The highest number was observed in the age group of 41-50 years (26.1%). Male outnumbered the female with a male female ratio of 2.83:1. Most of the victims are labourers (56.6%) followed by housewife (17.4%), electrician and businessman (8.7% each respectively), official and student accounting for only 4.3% (Fig. 2). All the electrocution deaths were accidental in nature, suicidal and homicidal cases were not observed in the present study. Conclusions: The number of electrocution deaths within the present study period are comparatively lower than other studies done in India. Proper maintenance of electrical wires and using safety measures by spreading public awareness would go a long way to bring down the fatality of electrical injuries. Keywords: Electrocution, Accidental deaths, Electrical current, Injury