IMA和H-FABP在心源性猝死法医学诊断中的应用

急性心肌缺血的发生是心源性猝死的最常见原因,而如何认定早期急性心肌缺血是法医学研究的热点,同时也是临床预防心肌梗死发生的重要环节。本文通过对缺血修饰白蛋白(ischemia modified albumin,IMA)和心型脂肪酸结合蛋白(heart-type fatty acid binding protein,H-FABP)的结构、功能、临床应用价值及法医学中的应用前景进行综述,旨在分析二者是否可作为早期心肌缺血的生化检测指标用于心源性猝死的诊断,并为今后选择心源性猝死的科研方向提供借鉴。     

全外显子组测序对肥厚型心肌病猝死者的基因分析

目的在全外显子组水平分析1例肥厚型心肌病(hypertrophic cardiomyopathy,HCM)猝死病例的相关致病性基因突变。方法对1例具有HCM病理学特征的猝死病例样本,利用Illumina~Hi Seq 2500平台进行全外显子组测序(whole exome sequencing,WES)。测序数据分析以hg19为参照序列,筛选可疑的单核苷酸变异位点,通过PhyloP、PolyPhen-2、SIFT等软件进行突变的保守性和功能分析。结果经过筛选,发现该病例的MYBPC3基因发生C719R杂合突变。结论利用二代测序技术进行全外显子组水平的分子解剖(基因突变检测和分析),有助于明确HCM的分子机制,并为死因分析提供新的方法和思路。     

阿维菌素在急性中毒死家兔体内的再分布研究

目的考察阿维菌素在急性中毒死家兔体内的再分布。方法按最小致死量一次性灌胃250mg/kg阿维菌素,HPLC法检测家兔死后0h、24h、48h和72h中阿维菌素的含量。结果给家兔一次性灌胃250mg/kg阿维菌素的临床死亡时间为120.6±9.2min(±s,n=10);测定了阿维菌素的致死血浓度和致死组织浓度;家兔死后0h~72h心血和各主要脏器组织中阿维菌素含量存在体内再分布现象;确定肝、肾、肺为最佳组织检材。结论阿维菌素在急性中毒死家兔体内的再分布数据,对法医办理此类案件具有重要参考价值。     

试析交通肇事移动逃逸致死的定性

遗弃罪法益的变化使交通肇事逃逸致死问题的定性变得复杂化。在交通肇事移动逃逸致死时 ,除可能构成交通肇事罪之外 ,还涉及到不作为的故意杀人罪与 (移置 )遗弃罪的界分。对此 ,应通过违反作为义务程度的强弱判断行为人主观故意的内容 ,从而准确区分二者。     

Algor mortis: an erroneous measurement following postmortem refrigeration

Determination of the time of death is one goal of medicolegal death investigations. Algor mortis has been used as a measure of the postmortem interval (PMI). We prospectively recorded the core temperatures of 19 adult bodies entering our morgue cooler and at 3, 6, and 9 h of refrigeration. We then compared the cooling rate with the calculated body mass index (BMI). For each individual body, the rate of cooling was fairly linear with no evidence of a plateau. There was fair to moderate correlation between the BMI and the cooling rate: cooling rate = -0.052 (BMI) + 3.52. The probability of linearity in any given case was 36%. Variables affecting this correlation included the presence and the layers of clothing and if the clothing was wet. Our data confirm that algor mortis is of very limited utility in determining the PMI in bodies that have been refrigerated.     

Death related to aortic coarctation in a young female during sexual intercourse

Coarctation of the aorta (CA) is diagnosed mainly in pediatric patients, and therapy is conservative if asymptomatic, but surgical treatment is required if advanced arterial hypertension is present. Moderate to severe forms contraindicate any type of physical activity requiring cardiac effort. Here, we describe the first documented death of an apparently healthy 35-year-old woman because of cardiac tamponade by rupture of an aortic aneurysm, possibly related to congenital CA, prolonged use of oxymetazoline hydrochloride, and physical and/or emotional stress during sexual activity. Our patient was asymptomatic for classical CA symptoms. The patient's breathing difficulties likely in hindsight were due not so much to nasal congestion, but rather to an ineffective oxygenation of the blood from the abnormal heart. In an attempt to treat the "nasal disease," the patient ingested chronic and excessive doses of decongestants, aggravating her fatal disease. The danger of inhaling large doses of nasal decongestants without an appropriate medical indication is highlighted here.     

Suicide by gabapentin overdose

Gabapentin is an antiepileptic drug that is prescribed for both FDA-approved and multiple off-label conditions, and has a relatively safe side-effect profile. Rare cases of overdose-related adverse effects have been reported in the literature. Described herein are the circumstances and autopsy findings of a 62-year-old woman with a history of depression, whose death was caused by intentional ingestion of excess gabapentin. The postmortem peripheral blood gabapentin concentration as determined by high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectroscopy was 88 μg/mL. Previously reported cases of individuals surviving gabapentin overdoses are discussed and compared with this case. Based on a review of the available literature, this appears to be the first published report of a death due solely to gabapentin toxicity.     

Sudden death owing to right atrial hemangioma

Primary cardiac tumors are rare, with an autopsy incidence of 0.03%. Seventy-nine percent to 85% of primary cardiac tumors are benign, and of the benign tumors, cardiac hemangiomas account for 5-10% of cases. Most cardiac hemangiomas are asymptomatic and are discovered incidentally at autopsy, or by echocardiography, computerized tomography, or magnetic resonance imaging. We report a case of sudden death owing to cardiac hemangioma in a 22-year-old woman who collapsed while shopping and became unresponsive. The autopsy revealed a hemorrhagic mass on the surface of the right atrium which was infiltrating and replacing the wall of the right atrium; histopathological examination confirmed the tumor was a cavernous hemangioma. Fewer than 20 cases of right atrial cavernous hemangiomas have been reported in English literature, emphasizing the rarity of our case.     

Household furniture tip-over deaths of young children

The potential for the injury or death of a child resulting from the tip-over of a piece of household furniture or a domestic appliance has not been previously well recognized. We reviewed nine accidental deaths of young children that resulted from avoidable residential hazards and/or lapses in supervision of the children by their caregivers. The offending household items included televisions, bedroom dressers, a kitchen stove, and a lounge chair. The causes of death were mechanical asphyxia, blunt trauma, and combined blunt head trauma and asphyxia. All of the deaths could have been prevented by appropriate anchoring of the piece of furniture and/or closer supervision of the child. A thorough multidisciplinary investigation is essential in establishing the cause and manner of death in such cases and in identifying risk factors that may aid in the prevention of future childhood deaths.