ILLUSTRATES Paulo Rocker
QUESTION Joao Pedro Chagas da Silva, Rio de Janeiro, RJ
Yes! Arms and legs may move during cadaveric rigidity. This process begins between one and two hours after death and ends within 24 hours.
When we are alive, both the contraction and relaxation of muscles use up energy-storing molecules, known by the acronym ATP. But when we die and ATP stores are depleted, the contracting muscle filaments are permanently joined together. It is at this moment that there may be a sudden movement of the limbs, if they are extended. This movement tends to always be towards the center of the body and can be influenced by factors such as the ambient temperature and even the cause of death.
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In addition, corpses can also “burp” and “fart”, as the proliferation of bacteria in the body results in the formation of gases. Another explanation for “cadaveric” movements is catalepsy, a nervous system problem that dramatically slows the heart rate, giving the illusion that the person has died.
Consultancy Nelson Brancaccio dos Santos, coordinator of the pathology laboratory at the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences-PUCSP, and Angelo Carpinelli, deputy head of the Department of Physiology at USP