FDTD analysis of induced electric field in pheripheral nerve of human body models due to contact current

Electrostatic discharge or spark may occur before the human touches a metallic object with different electrical potential. The current may stimulate muscle and peripheral nerves. The in-situ electric fields are computed and compared in anatomically based models of adults and child due to contact current from charged human body. Frequency-dependent finite-difference time-domain method was used, in which biological tissue is assumed to obey a 4-pole Debye model. From our computational results, discharge current was almost identical to each other for the models of adults and child. The time course of the induced electric field in the child was different primary because of the difference in the human body capacitance. The induced electric fields in the fingers were comparable to each other in different models. The computed induced electric field at the threshold charge inducing electro-stimulation was in fair agreement with the threshold electric field estimated from a strength-duration curve.