Death Due to Decapitation in Two Motorcyclists: A Description of a Unique Case and a Brief Review of the Literature

Deaths due to decapitation, especially related to traffic accidents, are rarely found in forensic practice. The present case involves a man and a woman who died from decapitation due to an unusual mechanism while they were riding on a motorbike down a mountain road. The autopsy, which was completed as a physics study, allowed the accident to be reconstructed as follows: A plastic cable that had detached from a timber‐transporting machine whipped the road and hit the two motorcyclists. The impact resulted in the complete severing of both riders’ heads. Involving different scientists in this accident investigation was crucial to understanding the dynamics of the accident. In fact, in addition to scene inspection and autopsy, a physics study was carried out on the cable and the clamp involved, which led to an explanation for the abrupt movement of the cable and, thus, to a thorough reconstruction of the accident.     

The body buried twice

The authors report the case of an unusual reason for an "exhumation." A young person "exhumed" a child's body involved in a road accident because he wanted to test methods for preventing or slowing down the process of postmortem decay.     

Morphologic changes in spinal cord of patients with spinal injuries who died in hospital

Morphologic changes in the spine have been investigated in patients with spinal injuries who died in hospital. The incidence of injuries has been evaluated as 9.3% of mechanical injuries. Purposeful search for possible injuries increased the rate of detection of injuries of the spine and the cord. Spinal cord can be impaired without involving the osseous formations and spinal ligaments. Edema of the cord tissue develops during the early period of injury and prevents the detection of injuries, persisting for a long time after the injury. Edemas are detected even in subjects who died at the site of accident.     

Decapitation due to car accident

The occurrence of complete decapitation as a consequence of car accident is an extremely rare event. This fatality is generally seen in pedestrians run over by trains and also in motorcyclists who impact against the tailboard of trucks. Moreover, complete transection of pedestrians and occupants of cars has been described in road accidents especially in case of vehicles traveling at a high speed. We present a case of decapitation with complete degloving injury of the neck in a patient involved in a traffic accident, and we briefly discuss the possible mechanisms producing this injury.     

Injury analyses of fatal motorcycle collisions in south-east Scotland

The timing of death and pathological findings in fatal motorcycle accidents in south-east Scotland between 1987 and 1997 were investigated. Of the 59 motorcyclists who died, 38 were dead when found at the accident scene, six others were alive when found but died at the scene, two died in an ambulance in transit to hospital and 13 died after reaching hospital. Scoring of the injuries according to the Abbreviated Injury Scale revealed Injury Severity Scores (ISS) ranging from 25 to 75. Overall, injuries to the head, neck and chest were responsible for the most severe injuries. Twenty-five motorcyclists had injuries acknowledged to be unsurvivable (ISS = 75), most of which involved the thoracic aorta, brainstem and cervical spinal cord. The greatest potential to reduce the death rate amongst motorcyclists lies with accident prevention/injury reduction measures, rather than through improved treatment of injuries. Efforts to try to alter driving behaviour and to improve the design of vehicles and helmets need to continue.     

Fatal high cervical spinal cord injury in an automobile accident complicating os odontoideum

We report a case where spinal instability from incomplete fusion of the dens of C2 (os odontoideum) allowed anterior displacement of the skull and first cervical vertebra following right frontal impact against the A pillar in an automobile accident. Resultant crushing and laceration of the spinal cord occurred at the level of C1 and C2. Without either radiographic investigation or detailed examination of the spine, the fatal injury might have been overlooked and death attributed to acute alcoholic poisoning because the blood alcohol level was .613%.     

498例海口市道路交通事故死亡案例的法医学分析

目的分析海口市道路交通事故死亡案件的特点,为死亡原因鉴定及预防提供参考依据。方法收集2014—2016年海口市公安局交警支队受理的498例道路交通事故死亡的案例资料,对性别、年龄、案发时间、死者交通方式、肇事车辆类型及死亡原因等相关参数进行分析。结果死者年龄以21~40岁居多,男女性之比为3∶1;案发时间以每年3、4、5月及10月,每天的6:01~8:00及20:01~22:00为高峰期;死者交通方式以驾(摩托车和电动车)的发生率最高(30.9%);肇事车辆以摩托车和电动车为主(57.4%);死亡原因以颅脑损伤居多,胸腹部损伤次之。结论道路交通事故死亡案件的尸体检验对死亡性质及责任认定有重要作用和意义。     

道路交通事故中涉案者交通行为方式的法医学鉴定

目的回顾道路交通事故中需要进行涉案者交通方式鉴定的案例。探讨此类案例鉴定的思路和技术方法。方法收集28例近年本单位进行的道路交通事故涉案者交通行为方式鉴定案例,统计涉案者一般情况、损伤程度与交通行为方式的关系,交通事故发生的时间和地点、交通事故中车辆碰撞类型、采用的技术方法等,进行统计学处理。结果本组资料共28起道路交通事故案件,涉案人员共57人,男性50人．女性7人。交通事故发生时间夜间为19例（67．86％）,白天为9例（32．14％）。道路类型中,城市市区道路10例（35．7％）,城市郊区道路1例（3．6％）,省级道路10例（35．7％）,高速公路7例（25％）。酒后驾车9例（32．1％）。交通事故类型中,电动自行车与机动车事故5例（17．8％）,机动车与自行车事故1例（3．6％）,机动车单方事故7例（25．0％）;机动车与机动车事故11例（39．3％）,机动车与行人事故4例（14．3％）。涉案人员死亡27人,损伤29人,无明显伤害1人。损伤存活者中轻微伤10例（34．5％）,轻伤8例（27．6％）,重伤1l例（37．9％）。涉案者交通行为方式鉴定种类中,汽车驾驶人和乘车人认定16例（57．1％）,摩托车驾驶人和乘车人认定1例（3．6％）,电动自行车驾驶人和乘车人认定5例（17．8％）,自行车推行和骑行状态认定1例（3．6％）,摩托车推行和骑行状态认定1例（3．6％）,行人横过公路方向4例（14.3％）。涉案者交通行为方式鉴定采用的技术手段和方法．包括法医学活体损伤检验、法医学尸表检验、涉案肇事车车辆痕迹检验、DNA检验鉴定、现场人体模拟实验等。结论根据人体（活体或尸体）的体表损伤形态特征、痕迹分布,分析其致伤物和致伤方式,结合车辆痕迹检验结果,得出确认符合某种交通行为方式或者不符合某种交通行为方式的判断,结合案件的相关情况分析重建交通事故过程．是进行涉案者交通行为方式鉴定的基本思路。     

Sudden death in a child due to an intrathoracic paraganglioma

A 12-year-old boy under treatment for asthma was found dead in his home. The autopsy revealed a large posterior mediastinal mass that completely compressed the upper lobe of the right lung and the associated airways. This mass extended from the right costovertebral sulcus into the thoracic spinal canal through the spinal foramen and compressed the spinal cord. It was located in the epidural space and was adherent to a nerve root. The histologic and immunocytochemical features were that of a paraganglioma. Although neurogenic tumors are the most common posterior mediastinal masses in the pediatric population, paragangliomas are rare, and spinal involvement has not been described in children. In addition, sudden death has not been reported in association with any of the 13 cases of posterior mediastinal paraganglioma described in the literature as involving the spine. This case illustrates an unusual cause of sudden death in a pediatric patient due to a benign neoplasm.     

Perceived Injustice Predicts Intention to Litigate: Findings from a Spinal Cord Injury Sample

The current study examined the association between perceived injustice (assessed by the Injustice Experiences Questionnaire) and intent to litigate in a sample of individuals who had recently suffered a spinal cord injury and were currently on an inpatient rehabilitation unit. Higher perception of injustice was associated with reported interest in litigation. In logistic regression analyses, perceived injustice uniquely differentiated between individuals who foresaw involvement in litigation versus those who did not, with the blame/unfairness factor of the Injustice Experiences Questionnaire emerging as more significant than the severity/irreparability of loss factor. Both anticipated litigation and higher perception of injustice were associated with greater attribution of responsibility for injury to other person(s) and reduced forgiveness across a number of domains. Finally, a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was conducted to identify IEQ score most associated with anticipated litigation. This study is the first to examine perception of injustice in a spinal cord injury sample or the association between perceived injustice and litigation intent. Results support the possibility that psychological appraisals of injury may have significant legal ramifications.     

Forensic medical characteristic of the neurovascular apparatus in the case of spinal cord injury

This paper is devoted to the analysis of the results of the author's investigations concerning spinal cord injuries. The voluminous material obtained with the use of up-to-date research methods (histological, histochemical, and biochemical) includes basic data on the mechanisms of regulation of blood circulation under normal conditions and in the case of a mechanical injury. It is shown that pathological morphological changes in the affected areas of the spinal cord as well as activities of transport enzymes in the capillaries and the reactive processes in the monoaminoergic nervous apparatus of he arteries may be used as the objective criteria for the determination of the time of the injury. The results of these studies find application in the practical diagnostic work for the estimation of the time of the spinal cord injury.     

The diagnosis of diffuse axonal injury in routine autopsy practice

A 40-year-old pedestrian was involved in a road traffic accident. He lost consciousness immediately and remained comatose for 6 months until he died of a bronchopneumonia. Examination of the fixed brain revealed the late results of diffuse axonal injury. Not all the features were readily visible macroscopically, but required a limited number of histological sections from readily predictable sites for demonstration. Special stains played only a confirmatory role. This case illustrates some of the problems in diagnosing one of the commoner patterns of brain damage in head injury, and shows how the problem may best be approached in practice.     

Autonomic dysreflexia and sudden death in people with traumatic spinal cord injury

Autonomic dysreflexia (AD) is an uncommon but potentially life-threatening clinical syndrome consisting of acute episodes of excessive, uncontrolled sympathetic output that may occur in quadriplegics and in paraplegics whose spinal cord lesions are above the level of T6. These uncontrolled bouts of sympathetic output can cause transient and pronounced elevations of blood pressure that on occasion can lead to serious sequela such as the precipitation of a hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage. The episodes of AD are often triggered by some type of noxious stimulus such as a distended urinary bladder or a fecal impaction. We present the case of a 62-year-old man with a history of quadriplegia resulting from a diving accident 40 years ago that was complicated clinically by episodes of autonomic dysreflexia. While hospitalized, he experienced an episode of autonomic dysreflexia with severe hypertension, which was soon followed by neurologic deterioration and death. Antemortem imaging revealed a large hypertensive-type intracerebral hemorrhage originating in his right caudate nucleus. Although his death at first appeared to be a natural death due to a spontaneous hypertensive-type intracerebral hemorrhage, his clinically documented autonomic dysreflexia convincingly linked the remote spinal cord injury and the fatal intracerebral hemorrhage, engendering an accidental manner of death.     

论道路交通事故认定行为的法律性质

正确认识道路交通事故认定行为的法律性质,对完善道路交通事故认定行为的法律规制具有重要意义。长期以来,学术界对道路交通事故认定行为的法律性质存在很大争议。本文认为,道路交通事故认定是公安机关履行处理交通事故职责的行为,其法律性质应该是具体行政行为中的行政确认行为。     

The histoenzymological diagnosis of the time of occurrence of a closed spinal cord trauma]

Time course of the activities of transport enzymes in capillary walls of human spinal cord was studied in various periods after closed injury to the cord, inflicted by hard blunt objects, with the use of histochemical methods for the detection of alkaline phosphatase and Mg-dependent ATPase. Wave-like fluctuations in the activities of the examined enzymes were revealed. The findings may be used to assess the period elapsed since the cord injury.     

Metastatic cancer of the urinary bladder: can it be a nonnatural death?

Deaths from metastatic carcinoma are almost exclusively viewed as wholly natural deaths. However, if it can be shown that a cancer has arisen as a result of a prior traumatic injury and the body's healing response to the injury, or treatment thereof, then in select cases, the manner of death shall reflect that of the precipitating injury. This case report is that of a woman who was rendered quadriplegic from spinal cord injury sustained in a motor vehicle crash when she was 22 years old. She died at the age of 49 years from widely metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder. Her bladder cancer most likely arose from decades-long chronic irritation of the bladder epithelium by physical contact with an indwelling Foley catheter and urinary infections. Over the years, the chronic bladder irritation likely precipitated metaplastic, dysplastic, and finally neoplastic changes of the bladder epithelium, providing a link between her spinal cord injury, the indwelling Foley catheter, and her bladder cancer, engendering an accidental manner of death. The manner of death reflected the circumstances of her injury that predisposed her to the cancer that eventually caused her death.     

体感诱发电位检查在法医学鉴定中的应用探讨

目的探讨体感诱发电位(SEP)检查在法医学鉴定中的应用价值。方法将60例神经系统外伤(不包括周围神经损伤)并功能障碍者分为脊髓损伤组(33例)和颅脑损伤组(27例),分别进行神经系统查体及SEP检查,并对其结果进行相关分析。结果脊髓损伤组SEP结果33例均表现为异常,异常率100%,且随着功能障碍程度的加重,SEP异常的程度亦加重,两者呈正相关(R=0.72,P<0.01,n=33)。27例颅脑损伤者,仅有9例异常,异常率为33%,功能障碍程度与SEP异常相关性分析(R=0.36,P>0.05)。结论SEP检查是客观评定脊髓功能较为敏感而准确的辅助检查手段;但对颅脑损伤功能障碍的客观评价价值相对有限。     

Fatal pedestrian-bicycle collisions

Although, fatal collisions between pedestrians and bicycles are relatively rare, they are still of forensic relevance because of the need to explore the circumstances of the accident. Based on three reconstructed cases, situation and injury patterns are presented that might prove useful in future cases: usually the person causing the accident is the cyclist while the pedestrian generally suffers more severe injuries; the situation at the site of accident is important for its reconstruction: end location of the persons involved in the accident, injuries and traces on pedestrians and cyclists, traces at the site of accident and on the bicycle; because of the lack of pre-crash traces and any eyewitness accounts, the pedestrian's injuries are the best starting point for the reconstruction of the accident; a characteristic wound on the lower leg of the pedestrian that reveals the initial impact between the front wheel and the leg is crucial not because of its seriousness, but because of its external morphology; the injuries that can be expected by the following impact between body and handlebar are unspecific and only minor; the most severe injuries to the pedestrian as a result of the accident are caused secondarily by falling and hitting the head on the road; the fall of the cyclist, however, corresponds to a throw-off followed by a sliding phase with less impact load when the head hits the ground [maximum abbreviated injury scale 1 (MAIS 1)]; the cyclists involved are mainly younger persons on fashionable bicycles (here: mountain bikes); in the great majority of cases, the injured pedestrians are frail, elderly people with a lower tolerance of trauma.     

Rupture of liver cell adenoma with fatal massive hemoperitoneum resulting from minor road accident

Blunt abdominal trauma can cause rapid death resulting from serious injuries of internal organs. The liver is commonly involved and may show tearing, usually in its upper surface, resulting in hemoperitoneum eventually leading to death. Minor trauma implies serious liver damage only when previous pathologic changes causing enlargement of the organ are present. The case of a 25-year-old woman who died as a consequence of a minor road accident is reported. At autopsy, the body showed no external injuries, the only relevant finding being a massive hemoperitoneum from the rupture of an unusually large liver cell adenoma. Liver cell adenomas carry a serious risk of spontaneous rupture, which may result in the death of the patient. The occurrence of the rupture after a minor blunt abdominal trauma is highly unusual.