A chokehol or stranglehold1 (in budo referred to as shime-waza, 絞技, "constriction technique") is a grappling hold that strangles the opponent, and leads to unconsciousness or even death. Chokeholds are practiced and used in martial arts, combat sports, self-defense, law-enforcement and in military hand to hand combat application. They are generally considered superior compared to brute-force manual strangling, which usually requires a large disparity in physical strength to be effective. Instead of simply using the fingers or arms to attempt to crush the neck, chokeholds effectively use leverage such as figure-four holds or collar holds that use the clothes to assist in the strangle. Depending on the reaction of the victim, it may compress the airway, interfere with the flow of blood in the neck, or work as a combination of the two (see the 'General' section in the article on strangling for further detail).