Unusual findings in a death caused by a car fire

Witnesses detected a burning car in the parking lot next to a discotheque in the early morning hours. After the fire had been extinguished, the charred body of the 23-year-old car owner was found in the driver's seat. The young man had been a guest of the discotheque the previous night and consumed plenty of alcoholic drinks. The traces left by the fire on the car suggested that the fire had started in the passenger compartment. At autopsy, greyish-brown discoloration and induration of the mucosa of the respiratory tract were found in addition to massive aspiration of soot and signs of soot swallowing. The macroscopic and histological findings pointed to a chemical burn of the airways probably caused by chlorine gases developing when the covering of the passenger compartment was burning. Chemical burns due to inhalation, aspiration and swallowing of soot are all signs of vitality, so that a smoldering fire must have gone on for a while inside the car with the windows closed. The most probable cause of the fire is that clothing or textile material in the car was set on fire by a burning cigarette.     

Investigation of a death caused by rectal insertion of cocaine

A 29-year-old homosexual man died as a result of cocaine inserted into his rectum by his sexual partner. The apparent purpose of this form of drug abuse is to relax the anal sphincter muscles. However, as in this case, cocaine administered in this fashion has a high potential for toxicity. The possible legal and medical ramifications of death resulting from this practice are discussed.     

Sudden death in an infant caused by rupture of a basilar artery aneurysm.

Ruptured aneurysms of the cerebrovasculature in infancy and early childhood, except for "giant" aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations, are rare. Seizures, loss of consciousness, and apnea are the usual presenting signs in infancy; symptoms such as headache or visual disturbances and signs such as cranial nerve compression or meningeal irritation commonly found in older children or adults are absent in infants. However, the morphologic findings (i.e., subarachnoid and retinal hemorrhage, and occasionally subdural hemorrhage) may be mistaken for inflicted trauma, especially if the aneurysm is not identified. Sudden death caused by rupture of a cerebral aneurysm has not been previously described in an infant. This report outlines the investigation and autopsy findings in a 7-month-old infant who died unexpectedly as a result of rupture of a complex basilar artery aneurysm.     

眼手术后使用激素不当致死医疗纠纷1例

肾上腺皮质激素具有抗炎、免疫抑制、抗毒素等作用，在临床各科广泛使用。但大剂量或长期应用可能产生一些严重的副作用甚至导致死亡。在临床应用中应该严格掌握其使用指征，对其可能产生的副作用应严密观察和监控。笔者报道1例眼科因疏忽而违反肾上腺皮质激素使用原则，诱发肺结核发展为干酪性肺炎死亡的医疗纠纷。     

眼手术后使用激素不当致死医疗纠纷1例

肾上腺皮质激素具有抗炎、免疫抑制、抗毒素等作用,在临床各科广泛使用。但大剂量或长期应用可能产生一些严重的副作用甚至导致死亡。在临床应用中应该严格掌握其使用指征,对其可能产生的副作用应严密观察和监控。笔者报道1例眼科因疏忽而违反肾上腺皮质激素使用原则,诱发肺结核发展为干酪性肺炎死亡的医疗纠纷。案例某男,66岁。因“左眼网膜脱离术后4月”于某年11月18日入住某医院眼科。既往史:曾行“双眼白内障术”,4月前行“左眼网膜脱离术”。入院查体:一般情况可,BP150/90mmHg,心肺及腹部检查无异常。眼科检查:右眼盲,瞳孔上移不规则…     

Sudden death caused by tension pneumothorax after rupture of a thoracic aortic aneurysm. Case report

A rare case of fatal tension pneumothorax is reported. An aged Japanese man with marked subcutaneous emphysema of the neck was found collapsed in a betting office. He was ascertained to have left tension pneumothorax, based on radiographic examinations carried out before his death. At autopsy, severe pneumomediastinum was observed, and the descending thoracic aorta with a ruptured dissecting aneurysm was closely adhered to the left lung pleura. The hemorrhage spread into the pulmonary parenchyma and finally spouted out from the surface of the lung apex. Because the blood loss itself was not fatal in quantity, it is concluded that the patient died of tension pneumothorax caused by a lung penetration from the rupture of an aortic aneurysm.     

缝隙连接、连接蛋白与冠心病猝死

缝隙连接(gapjunction,GJ)构成细胞之间的跨膜水相通道,协调细胞间化学及电信息的交流。心脏上缝隙连接的主要功能是为心肌细胞间的电冲动提供低压传导通路,并维持心肌的协调运动。近年来的研究显示,心肌细胞(特别是心室肌工作细胞)上构成缝隙连接的连接蛋白含量、分布及功能的异常与各种心律失常的产生和持续关系密切。这很可能为临床及法医实践中,诊断冠心病猝死心肌早期病变提供一个新的思路。     

Child abuse. 3 cases of child death caused by negligence and starvation

Three cases of child death by starvation and negligence are reported because of the unusual circumstances in which they took place. These cases furnished the most glaring evidence of neglect.     

Adult sudden death caused by aspiration of chewing gum

A case of a fatal foreign material aspiration is presented in the following text. A 24-year-old white male died suddenly. A piece of chewing gum lodged in a pool of frothy fluid was revealed at autopsy. Microscopic examinations revealed atelectasia emphysema, eosinophilic exudate and empty spaces. Blood and urine samples were analyzed, for alcohol and drug use by fluorescence polarization immunoassay (FPIA) on an Abbott AXSYM system. No alcohol or other drugs were detected in blood or urine.     

Schizophrenia and sudden death: a medical examiner case study.

This study reviews the causes of sudden death of 66 schizophrenic patients who presented to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) for the State of Maryland over a 3-year period from 1994 through 1996. We identified an increased incidence of suicide compared with the general population of OCME cases. This observation is consistent with reports by other investigators. The majority of the deaths were the result of natural diseases, mostly atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Accidents, suicides, and 1 homicide were also present in this group.     

冠心病合并冠状动脉血栓猝死的法医病理学特征

目的探讨冠心病合并冠状动脉血栓形成导致猝死的法医学特征。方法收集96例因冠心病而猝死的案例,并将其分为血栓形成组与无血栓形成组,对发病时间、诱因、病理特征等方面进行分析。结果两组都以男性为主,在季节和时间节律分布、诱因构成上差异无统计学意义,但血栓形成组中年龄〈40岁发病率更高;血栓形成组的心脏质量和冠脉狭窄程度低于无血栓形成组,而两组冠脉粥样硬化累及的支数（≥2）、累及长度及合并心梗等指标差异均无统计学意义,但血栓形成组有低于无血栓形成组的趋势。结论两组人群都以男性为主且发病诱因、冠脉病变部位及致死机制相似,但血栓形成组的发病年龄较轻,心脏的病变程度较低,法医学解剖中当认真鉴别。     

Sudden death in an infant caused by rupture of a basilar artery aneurysm

Ruptured aneurysms of the cerebrovasculature in infancy and early childhood, except for "giant" aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations, are rare. Seizures, loss of consciousness, and apnea are the usual presenting signs in infancy; symptoms such as headache or visual disturbances and signs such as cranial nerve compression or meningeal irritation commonly found in older children or adults are absent in infants. However, the morphologic findings (i.e., subarachnoid and retinal hemorrhage, and occasionally subdural hemorrhage) may be mistaken for inflicted trauma, especially if the aneurysm is not identified. Sudden death caused by rupture of a cerebral aneurysm has not been previously described in an infant. This report outlines the investigation and autopsy findings in a 7-month-old infant who died unexpectedly as a result of rupture of a complex basilar artery aneurysm.     

阑尾切除术引起医疗纠纷法医学鉴定1例

某男，27岁。2002年8月9日因腹痛在当地医院就诊，以“急性阑尾炎”收入院。住院病历记录：患者因“中上腹痛2天，全腹痛1天”入院。查体：T 38℃．R 20次份，P 84次份，BP 13．3／8kPa，急性痛苦面容，头颈、心肺检查阴性，腹平坦，未见肠型及蠕动波，全腹压痛、反跳痛及肌紧张，以下腹明显，移动性浊音阳性，肠     

阑尾切除术引起医疗纠纷法医学鉴定1例

案　例某男 ,2 7岁。 2 0 0 2年 8月 9日因腹痛在当地医院就诊 ,以“急性阑尾炎”收入院。住院病历记录 :患者因“中上腹痛 2天 ,全腹痛 1天”入院。查体 :T 38℃ ,R 2 0次 /分 ,P 84次 /分 ,BP 13.3/ 8kPa,急性痛苦面容 ,头颈、心肺检查阴性 ,腹平坦 ,未见肠型及蠕动波 ,全腹压痛、反跳痛及肌紧张 ,以下腹明显 ,移动性浊音阳性 ,肠鸣音 3次 /分 ,腹穿抽出 2ml脓性液体。辅助检查 :血常规WBC 11.2× 10 9/L ,N 81%。B超示腹腔积液。入院诊断 :急性坏疽性阑尾炎穿孔 ,全腹膜炎。急诊行剖腹探查术 ,术中发现 :大网膜充血下移 ,肠管充血 ,…     

Sudden death caused by embolization of trophoblast from hydatidiform mole

A 16-year-old pregnant female presented to a hospital emergency room with vaginal bleeding and uterine cramping. She underwent a hysterotomy and curettage and, during the procedure, her pulse dropped from 130 to 30 beats/minute, her pO2 fell to 10 mm of mercury, and she could not be resuscitated. At autopsy, she was found to have massive pulmonary embolization of syncytiotrophoblast from a hydatidiform mole of the uterus. This is the sixth reported case of trophoblastic embolization from a hydatidiform mole ending in death. This fatal termination may occur after a period of respiratory symptoms and may occur regardless of the mode of treatment.     

The course of respiration in death caused by obstructive asphyxia

Experiments were carried out on 30 dogs to investigate the course of respiration during obstructive asphyxia. They were asphyxiated by occlusion of the exposed trachea. Intrathoracic pressure, blood pressure in the femoral artery, electrocardiogram and electroencephalogram readings were registered. In most cases, the respiration course during the dyspnea stage by occlusion of the trachea generally had an inspiratory character. In a few animals, when the trachea was occluded in the expiratory phase, there were a few positive expiratory respirations with moderate inspiratory movement and thereafter the respirations were inspiratory during the dyspnea stage. The terminal respirations, which occurred 1-2 min before the circulatory breakdown, were generally inspiratory, but in a few dogs they were expiratory.     

肺动脉栓塞猝死的法医病理学检验

对５０例肺动脉栓塞猝死案例分析,结果显示：引起肺动脉栓塞猝死的主要原因为创伤（４２％）,心脏疾病（３２％）,外科手术（２０％）等。血栓栓子多来源于下肢静脉（８０％）;其次为心腔内附壁血栓（２０％）。发生猝死高峰季节为１０～１２月;低峰季节为４～６月。猝死场所多见于医院内。最后提出了该病的法医学鉴定注意事项