Cardiac rupture due to severe fatty infiltration in the right ventricular wall

An extremely rare case of sudden death caused by cardiac rupture due to severe fatty infiltration in the right ventricular myocardium is presented. The patient, a 74-year-old woman, had no history of chest trauma, hypertension, or pulmonary disease. The autopsy showed a small tear in the right ventricle and cardiac tamponade, but no coronary artery lesion. In the right ventricular myocardium, muscle fibers were definitely atrophic or absent, with massive fatty replacement. Fatty infiltration of the myocardium, if severe, can be a cause of serious cardiac dysfunction or, occasionally, sudden death.     

Cardiac rupture following blunt trauma

A case of cardiac rupture following blunt trauma with no additional injuries is described. This can be a difficult diagnosis because of the presence of additional injuries and the lack of clinical symptoms. Here, there was a rupture of the pericardium, all chambers of the heart and the thoracic aorta.     

Large droplet lipids in blood in the right ventricle

In several cases of fatal blunt-trauma injuries or after exposure to severe burning, large-drop fatty substances, discernible to the naked eye, were found in the venous blood of the right ventricle. Thin-layer chromatographic separation of the extracted lipids demonstrated an increase in the triglyceride fraction. Analysis of the fatty acids by means of combined gas chromatography/mass spectrometry showed a shift towards oleic acid. The distribution pattern of the molecular weights was determined by means of DCI-mass spectrometry in order to characterize the triglycerides in detail. The total chemical findings indicated that the visible lipids present in the right ventricle had predominantly derived from the adipose tissues. In cases of post mortem burning (without vital traumata) no typical pulmonary fat embolism had developed despite massive lipemia in the venous blood.     

Cardiac hydatid cyst rupture as cause of death

Echinococcosis is a frequent parasitic human infection in sheep-farming areas. It is caused by the larval or the cyst stage of a tapeworm, mainly Echinococcus granulosis. Humans can be infected by ingesting tapeworm eggs, from which cysts will be developed mostly in the liver and the lung. Cardiac involvement of echinococcosis is rare and its clinical evolution is silent till the complication stage. A young adult died suddenly. The autopsy showed a ruptured hydatid cyst hollowed on the right side of the interventricular septum, protruding in the ventricle. The left pulmonary artery contained white-colored fragments of a membrane, similar to the one found in the right ventricle, associated to small vesicles. All these elements were obstructing this vessel, extending to small pulmonary arterial branches. Dissection of the other organs did not show other locations. Microscopic examinations ascertained the diagnosis of echinococcosis. Death was imputed to a right ventricular hydatid cyst rupture with pulmonary artery embolism.     

Cardiac rupture in acute myocardial infarction: a reassessment

Cardiac rupture as a complication of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) has been described as occurring infrequently. Because of the recent dramatic decrease in autopsy rates, the authors believe that current studies do not accurately represent the frequency of this catastrophic complication. Autopsy protocols and archived histologic slides of patients with AMI were retrospectively reviewed to determine whether the frequency of cardiac rupture, as a complication of AMI, is altered when a non-hospital-based patient cohort after autopsy is evaluated. This review yielded 153 cases of 41 women and 112 men, whose postmortem examinations revealed gross and histologic evidence of AMI. Cardiac rupture was present in 30.7% of these cases. Of the 47 patients with rupture, 35 had no relevant medical history. The remaining 12 patients had various medical conditions. None of the patients in the rupture group had previously treated symptoms related to coronary artery conditions. Whereas women constituted 26.8% of the total AMI group, they had a cardiac rupture rate of 61%. By contrast, men with AMI had a cardiac rupture rate of 19.6%. All patients in the cardiac rupture group had heart weights over the predicted expected weight as a function of body weight. Age, gender, and heart weight were significant factors associated with cardiac rupture, whereas body mass index was not significantly related. When these factors were evaluated jointly, age was a significant explanatory factor for rupture among both men and women, whereas body mass index and heart weight were significant for men but not for women. When the rupture sites occurred on the left ventricular myocardium, the anterior wall was affected in 21 cases (45%), the posterior wall in 18 (38%), the lateral wall in 4 (9%), and the apex in 3 (6%). The right ventricular myocardium ruptured in 1 case (2%). Most of the patients had severe multivessel coronary artery disease. Histologic study of the specimens showed that the majority of ruptures occurred between 24 and 72 hours after myocardial infarction. This study showed a frequency of cardiac rupture of 30.7% in patients with AMI and sudden death according to medical examiner's records. These findings confirm and reinforce the importance of postmortem examination and autopsy as an adjunct to clinical medical practice.     

Fatal postpartum spontaneous liver rupture: case report and literature review

Maternal hepatic rupture is a rare complication of pregnancy that can be fatal to both mother and child. This phenomenon is most often associated with preeclampsia/eclampsia and/or HELLP syndrome, which is defined by a collection of clinical features including hemolysis (H), elevated liver enzymes (EL), and a low platelet count (LP). These disease processes are typically identified and treated during pregnancy, often in the last trimester. The described case is unusual in that the decedent had no known history of preeclampsia/eclampsia or HELLP syndrome during this pregnancy, and she died suddenly several days postpartum of liver rupture with massive intraperitoneal hemorrhage following a routine cesarean section delivery and an uneventful hospital course. Similar cases are infrequent in the literature, which is reviewed in this report.     

Echinococcal hydatid cyst at the right ventricle outlet with leakage to the pulmonary artery outflow causing follicular airway disease and sudden death

Postmortem examination of a 35-year-old parous woman who died suddenly revealed a hydatid cyst mass located at the right ventricular outlet, with a grossly discernible defect opening to the pulmonary outflow tract. Pulmonary hemorrhage, follicular bronchitis, and bronchiolitis also were present, with severe acute purulent exudation in the airways. Hydatid cyst complications must be kept in mind when dealing with sudden deterioration and death in patients who are residents of regions where echinococcosis is endemic.     

Sudden death due to bilateral spontaneous pneumothorax caused by rupture of congenital lung cysts

A case of sudden death of a 35-year-old woman due to spontaneous bilateral pneumothorax from rupture of congenital lung cysts is reported. The woman had been attended by two doctors before the lethal outcome. The medicolegal aspects pertaining to medical negligence, the diagnostic difficulties and the rare occurrence of the condition are discussed, as is the autopsy procedure.     

Myocardial dysplasia of the right ventricle (Uhl's anomaly) as a possible cause of sudden, unexpected death

Partial absence and fatty replacement of the myocardial compacta of the right ventricular wall was observed in five young male adults, four of whom died suddenly and unexpectedly and one in a car accident. In one of these cases there was only one coronary orifice. Four cases of the so-called Uhl anomaly had histological findings indicating dysmorphic myocardial cells associated with minimal lymphohistiocytic infiltrates within the fatty tissue. In one case, chronic destructive inflammation was a prominent feature. Marked dysmorphic alterations in the myocardial fibers suggested the occurrence of arrhythmic episodes as the main cause of sudden heart failure and death.     

主动脉夹层破裂与非破裂管壁的病理学对比观察

目的探讨炎性细胞和金属基质蛋白酶(MMPs)与主动脉夹层病变的关系。方法对本教研室1999年~2001年尸检14例主动脉夹层破裂致死(破裂组)和8例主动脉夹层因其它疾病死亡(未破裂组)的尸检案例资料,应用W e igert弹性纤维染色和免疫组化染色对两组主动脉夹层的动脉壁结构,CD68着色及MMP-9活性进行对比观察,并对免疫组化阳性染色进行图像分析。结果W e igert染色显示,两组管壁弹力纤维和胶原纤维均有较明显的分离、断裂或消失,但破裂组病变程度比未破裂组更重。免疫组化与图像分析结果显示,CD68阳性细胞的平均光密度值在破裂组为0.933±0.750,未破裂组为0.617±0.674;MMP-9活性的平均光密度值在破裂组为0.924±0.541,未破裂组为(0.651±0.988);两组间存在显著性差异(P<0.01)。结论炎性细胞浸润程度和MMP-9活性与主动脉夹层动脉管壁的病变程度及破裂紧密相关。     

Spontaneous rupture of the oesophagus

A case of death due to spontaneous rupture of the oesophagus is reported. Few similar cases have been previously reported. In some the oesophageal wall had been weakened by previous ulceration or scarring. In this case there was no history or postmortem evidence of such damage. Under certain circumstances postmortem rupture of the oesophagus could occur and should be distinguished from antemortem rupture.     

Fatal salmonella aortitis with mycotic aneurysm rupture

Salmonellae most commonly cause uncomplicated cases of gastroenteritis but have a predilection for damaged blood vessels, especially those damaged by atherosclerosis. The abdominal aorta is most frequently affected. The most serious complication of aortitis is mycotic aneurysm formation with subsequent rupture. The authors present the case of a 61-year-old man who was found unresponsive at home 3 days after discharge from the hospital for treatment of gastroenteritis with bacteremia. Postmortem examination revealed a ruptured mycotic aneurysm with a large retroperitoneal hematoma. Numerous gram-negative rods were embedded in the wall of the aorta and surrounding inflammatory infiltrate, compatible with the patient's previously isolated. Whereas abdominal aortic aneurysm rupture is most commonly associated with atherosclerosis, the isolation of from blood cultures, coupled with radiographic evidence of gas surrounding the aorta, should raise the suspicion of infectious aortitis. Whereas fatal rupture of an aortic aneurysm secondary to atherosclerosis alone or in conjunction with aortitis will not have an impact on the manner of death, infections are reportable and thus have public health implications.     

外伤性延迟性脾破裂法医学鉴定18例分析

外伤性脾破裂的案例 ,在法医检案中并不少见 ,但延迟性脾破裂相对较少 ,本文收集了 1996年至 2 0 0 1年 6年间我院所办的 18例延迟性脾破裂的鉴定案例资料 ,并加以整理、归纳、分析。案例资料(一 )一般资料本组资料的伤者 ,男性 15例 ,女性 3例 ,年龄最大的 6 0岁 ,最小的 18岁 ,平均年龄 30 .5岁 ,拳击伤 8例 ,占 44 .4% ,棍棒伤 5例 ,占 2 7.8% ,交通事故 3例 ,占 16 .7% ,高坠 2例 ,占 11.1%。(二 )破裂时间本组案例 ,在 1周内破裂的 3例 (最短的 1例仅 45ｈ) ,2周内破裂的 12例 ,超过 2周的 3例 ,最长的 1例达 38天。(三 )伴随症状所有…     

外伤性延迟性脾破裂法医学鉴定18例分析

外伤性脾破裂的案例,在法医检案中并不少见,但延迟性脾破裂相对较少,本文收集了1996 年至2001年6年间我院所办的18例延迟性脾破裂的鉴定案例资料,并加以整理、归纳、分析 .     

Spontaneous rupture of the urinary bladder

The report presents the case of a 33-year-old man under the primary assumption of homicide in which the court-ordered autopsy revealed death as a result of bleeding due to a spontaneous rupture of the urinary bladder. The article gives a short summary of the pathomorphological findings and their respective causes, for example the typical location of the rupture at the posterior wall and roof of the bladder and the common concomitant drunkenness. Furthermore, obligatory forensic investigations--beside the autopsy--are mentioned and discussed.     

Fourteen years' survival with an untreated traumatic rupture of the thoracal aorta

Untreated traumatic rupture of the aorta generally results in sudden death. A case with 14 years' survival after an unrecognized traumatic rupture of the aorta is presented. Chronic traumatic aneurysm of the aorta should be kept in mind in a patient who develops sudden symptoms of arteriosclerotic heart disease months to years after a relevant thoracic trauma.     

“公共利益”与农村土地征用权刍议

"公共利益"这一概念在法学、政治学以及社会学中都有使用.在法学领域,它与公共权力或私人权利有着密切的联系,是与民生息息相关的重要概念范畴.由于在"公共利益"的需要范畴上没有明确的界定,导致在征用农村土地过程中,出现了地方政府乱征滥用土地、农民利益严重受损等问题.因此,从"公共利益"的需要出发,分析国家行使土地征用权的特征,并借鉴韩国等国家土地征用的法律约定,以寻求建立适合中国市场经济条件下的农村土地征用制度.