Fat Transfer and Fatal Macroembolization

Fat embolism is usually associated with long bone fractures or other trauma. The diagnosis is usually clinical, and in most cases, emboli are not fatal and not usually seen on gross examination. At the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office, we autopsied the victim of fatal macroscopic fat embolization to the lungs. The patient died during buttock enhancement surgery when fat from liposuction was injected into her buttocks. Fat embolism from liposuction and fat injection is reportedly rare, and macroscopic embolization is rarer still. Varicose veins can occur in the area of the sciatic notch and are known to cause painful sciatica symptoms. We suggest them as a potential conduit for macroscopic fat to reach the lungs. Simple pre‐operative questioning for sciatica symptoms and possible radiologic study to rule out sciatic varices seem prudent before undertaking buttock‐enhancing surgery. Careful fat injection with pre‐aspiration is always advised.     

A policy mix experiment to promote start-up success: exploratory evaluation of the NSF Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)/Industry University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC) membership supplement

The Journal of Technology Transfer - This paper investigates the outcomes of a policy experiment, the NSF SBIR/IUCRC Membership Supplement, designed to promote the success of small high-tech...     

Developmental Relations Between Bullying Victimization and Suicidal Ideation in Middle Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood: Do Internalizing Problems and Substance Use Mediate Their Links?

Journal of Youth and Adolescence - Previous research has suggested that bullying victimization is associated with higher suicidal risk among young people; however, the mechanisms underlying this...     

Identification of some factors influencing soil transfer on shoes

In criminal activities, soil can be transferred from a crime scene to items linked with a perpetrator; for example, shoes, cars or tools. Several parameters will influence the quantity of soil transferred in a given scenario. The knowledge of the most influential factors can help the expert to assess the evidence using a logical approach at the activity level or to predict the amount of soil that can be expected in a given scenario. The influence of five chosen parameters, namely the shoe profile, shoe size, walker's weight, soil type and soil humidity were assessed using Design of Experiment (DOE) in order to understand their influence on soil quantity transferred on shoes.The Faced Central Composite Design (FCCD) using a quadratic model was found to be highly significant, thus they could be adequately used to model and to interpret the amount of soil recovered from one shoe.These designs demonstrate that the characteristics of the donor (soil type and soil humidity), as well as a combination of these two factors have a very significant impact on the soil transfer. The characteristics of the receptor (shoe profile, shoe size and walker's weight) also have an impact on the transfer but to a lesser extent.Globally, this research provides valuable information for the forensic scientist both in investigative mode: evaluation of the soil quantity possibly transferred on shoes, and in the evaluative steps: is the quantity of soil found on the suspect shoes in accordance to the proposition/scenario given by the prosecution and the defence?