Thread: Does a punctured heart really cause a fast death?

From watching alot of movies and series in my lifetime, one thing has always struck me as rather illogical.

When people are either shot or stabbed in the heart they die very fast.

Is this just fiction or reality, and why is it so?

As I see it blood will still pump even if a hole in the heart causes you to bleed internally. The lungs and brain will still get blood just with a lower rate due to a lower pressure(?), and not only should you remain alive but also conscious for some time.

Are movies just making this happen as a dramatic effect or something, or is there a reason you die so fast from - for example - a stab to the heart by a knife or gunshot wound.

they lose consciousness quick.

A deer shot in the heart can run about 100 yards or so, then the blood drains from their brain.

Police are taught to take two shots to the center of mass, then one to the brain. The shots to the center of mass are to make sure of the hit, the one to the brain is to stop the fight quickly. A person who has a lot of adrenaline flowing can fight on for quite a while after taking fatal wounds. This does not mean it happens that way all the time.

Wouldn't the heart explode when punctured?

Originally Posted by msafwan

Wouldn't the heart explode when punctured?

It depends on what is doing the puncturing. If it is an arrow or a knife, it would just put a hole in the heart, which may continue to pump some blood. If it is a high powered hunting rifle, it would pretty much destroy the heart completely. I don't think this always causes instant death, though, because there still may be some blood pressure in the brain for a while.

I have worked on a patient who had taken a fully penetrating wound to the heart, with a "stilletto" type knife, and then drove himself to the emergency room and walked in. The wound self sealed for a time but then ruptured. He collapsed in the ER but was saved due to prompt attention. The key factor in loss of the ablity to function is loss of blood pressure which equates to loss of oxygenation to the tissues.

There is a big difference between a stiletto and a gun shot. A bullet carries a shock wave with it, and does a lot of damage. Ever seen an exit wound compared to entry wound? A bullet through the heart will chop up the heart massively. Even a very small calibre bullet in the heart is unlikely to be survivable.

A stiletto, on the other hand, if inserted and removed cleanly, might leave a survivable wound. I believe it is common for trained killers to twist the knife in the wound, which would make the kill certain.

A human cannot survive as long as a deer. Our hearts are smaller, and shock sets in really, really quickly.

If we decapitate the head: the person should fall unconcious instantly right? so we can compare this with the instant blood loss to the brain resulting from heart failure (but I heard the head is still alive even after decapitation; you can call the person's name and he will open eyes...)

This article provides some insight to how fast someone may lose consciousness after being shot in the heart.
The Myth of Energy Transfer

When a person is shot in the body with a handgun and falls down unconscious within a half-dozen seconds, it can only be attributed to a psychological reaction to being shot. This person simply faints from the sudden realization and fright that he has been shot, not from blood loss or any other reason. (This discussion does not apply to rifle bullets. Obviously, wild animals that immediately collapse after being shot by a centerfire rifle bullet do not faint from fright. The wound dynamics of rifle bullets are markedly different, but the physiological mechanisms are identical.) In order to be FORCED to collapse an attacker must lose at least 20 percent of his total blood volume (unless the bullet damages his brain or cervical spinal cord). This will take several seconds to occur, even with a direct hit to the aorta or vena cava with a large caliber bullet.

Most "stops" are psychological, not physiological in nature. The bad guy either faints or makes a voluntary decision to stop what he's doing. It's possible that a bullet with more "wallop," one that quickly delivers its energy and produces more blunt force sensation, might play a role in producing psychological collapse. But, psychological reaction to being shot is highly erratic and unreliable. It doesn't happen to everyone, especially a highly motivated attacker who's determined to cause as much harm as he can before he's stopped.