ABSTRACT
Deaths due to electric shock are increasing despite stringent laws and preventive measures. These shocks are a leading cause of death amongst construction workers. In about 20% of the cases, no visible injury due to electricity can be seen. In some cases, non-electrical injuries are present and at times there are no eyewitnesses to provide a detailed account of events. In such circumstances, examination of scene of death, autopsy and accident reconstruction with the help of an electrical expert are all necessary to determine the cause of death. Here, we report one such case where a mason working on the second floor of a building under construction sustained an electrical injury, following which he was thrown to the ground sustaining a fatal traumatic injury. After careful consideration, his death was attributed to the head injury.
Subject(s)
Autopsy/methods , Craniocerebral Trauma/pathology , Death, Sudden/pathology , Electric Injuries/mortality , Electric Injuries/pathology , Adult , Forensic Medicine , Humans , MaleABSTRACT
Retropharyngeal abscess is a rare, deep seated infection of the neck that usually affects young children. Chronic retropharyngeal abscess is rare and results from tuberculosis of the spine. Such swelling in the neck gradually increases in size and is detected during the routine radiological screening for symptoms like pain, dysphagia, fever, dyspnoea, progressive inspiratory stridor (from laryngeal obstruction), neck hyperextension etc, but rarely leads to sudden death due to airway obstruction. Thus the forensic pathologist rarely comes across such type of cases. Present case concerns obstruction of upper airway by a large retropharyngeal cold abscess leading to death in a 13-year-old female child from a lower socio-economic family. The possible explanation for the progression and fatal outcome of such abscesses associated with the Pott's disease is being discussed in the light of available literature.
Subject(s)
Asphyxia/etiology , Cervical Vertebrae/microbiology , Retropharyngeal Abscess/microbiology , Retropharyngeal Abscess/pathology , Tuberculosis, Spinal/complications , Adolescent , Airway Obstruction/etiology , Cervical Vertebrae/pathology , Female , Forensic Pathology , Humans , Lung/pathology , Necrosis , Osteomyelitis/microbiology , Osteomyelitis/pathology , PovertyABSTRACT
Forensic pathologists deal not only with criminal, accidental and suicidal deaths, but also with a wide range of deaths from natural causes. Natural deaths at times can be sudden, unexpected and unattended by the relatives or friends or eye witnesses. In such cases, even though there is no criminal element in their causation, the case has to be investigated and medico-legal autopsy has to be conducted to know the exact cause of death, thus putting an end to the allegations raised. A 55-year-old male was found dead lying in his room in a pool of blood without any obvious injuries under suspicious circumstances with disturbed furniture in his room. The case was investigated due to suspicious circumstances of his death and absence of history of significant medical illness. The autopsy revealed the death was due to asphyxiation as a result of massive hemoptysis secondary to fibro-cavitatory tuberculosis.
