Stun guns work by applying a high-voltage, but low-current, electrical charge. Since the nervous system in our bodies works by sending electrical charges of its own through neural pathways, the electric current provided by a stun gun "confuses" the nervous system. This causes the recipient of a charge from a stun gun to feel great pain and to feel paralyzed for a brief instant, because his or her brain is now receiving mixed signals from the nervous system. Or, the electric current can cause many random muscles to trigger, causing a spasm or convulsion in many areas of the body. The high voltage is needed to get the charge into the subject's body, and the current is kept low (3 milliamps, depending on the model) so that the subject will not be injured severely. Some guns use a lower fluctuating voltage, designed to mimic the body's muscle-triggering impulses, immobilizing the recipient with less current. This has been labelled a "tetanizing weapon".
