Police officers must be trained to look more closely at innocuous-looking items that may conceal or be used as an edged weapon. Common items that may conceal an edged weapon are pens, mobile phones, cigarette lighters, rings, matchboxes, combs and brushes, belts, and credit cards. It is best to assume, therefore, that any item possessed by and in the hand of a suspect may contain an edged weapon. The two techniques of a knife attack are slashes/cuts, which involve a sweeping motion that inflicts a cut where the weapon contacts the body, or stabs/thrusts, which involve a direct penetration of the body by the weapon. This article describes the various types of wounds that may be inflicted by variations in these two basic types of knife attacks. In describing types of knife wounds, the article advises that all knife wounds can be fatal, with some wounds able to cause death in 10 seconds or less ("instant kills"). A chart classifies types of wounds as "bleeders" (an artery cut); "immobilizers" (muscle and nerve damage); and "instant kills." The chart shows the typical targets and types of knife attacks that can produce each of the three types of wounds. The article concludes by advising that extensive training is necessary for officers to recognize edged weapons and counter the various kinds of attacks that may be mounted with them.