ABSTRACT
Archival medical examiner specimens may contain perpetrator DNA evidence useful in unsolved ("cold case") homicides. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) histology slide archives were searched for sexual assault smears for all 376 female homicides from 1990 to 1999. Of these, the OCME had sexual assault smears on 84 of which 13 slides had sperm. Of these 13, six were still unsolved. DNA profiles were obtained on all six (5 from smears and one from swabs). Combined DNA Index System ( submission resulted in two matches ("hits") for new suspects. In addition, three suspects were eliminated in two cases. Our review of archival sexual assault smears resulted in DNA profiles that were able to assist in the investigation of four cold case homicide investigations. It may be worthwhile for medical examiner offices to search their archival histology slides for sexual assault smears on previously unsolved cases particularly those prior to the mid-1990s when DNA testing was less widely available.
Subject(s)
DNA Fingerprinting , DNA/isolation & purification , Databases, Nucleic Acid , Homicide , Sex Offenses , Anal Canal , Female , Humans , Male , Microsatellite Repeats , Mouth , Polymerase Chain Reaction , Specimen Handling , Spermatozoa/chemistry , VaginaABSTRACT
Iatrogenic deaths are a concern for patients, physicians, and public health specialists. Most medicolegal investigation jurisdictions in the United States have the legal authority and mandate to investigate deaths associated with diagnostic/therapeutic procedures. Given the decreasing trends of autopsies performed in U.S. hospitals, forensic pathologists are likely to take on an even greater role in investigating these deaths. This is an overview and forensic pathological approach to fatal complications due to diagnostic and therapeutic medical events.
Subject(s)
Cause of Death , Iatrogenic Disease , Anesthesia/adverse effects , Autopsy/statistics & numerical data , Autopsy/trends , Cross Infection/complications , Death Certificates , Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions , Forensic Pathology , Humans , Professional Role , Pulmonary Embolism/etiology , Renal Dialysis/adverse effects , Surgical Procedures, Operative/adverse effects , Transfusion ReactionABSTRACT
Diabetes mellitus is a common condition affecting both adults and children. Long-standing diabetes is associated with cardiovascular abnormalities such as coronary artery atherosclerosis, microvascular changes, hypertension, kidney disease, and heart failure. Its association with heart failure in the absence of coronary artery disease and hypertension was termed diabetic cardiomyopathy in the 1970s and is believed to account for some of the cardiac mortality in diabetic patients. This entity may be implicated as the cause of sudden cardiac death in the small percentage of diabetic patients in which the autopsy fails to demonstrate evidence of nonketotic hyperosmolar coma, diabetic ketoacidosis, or atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease. Molecular and metabolic alterations have been studied to explain the pathophysiology of this disease.
Subject(s)
Aneurysm, False/surgery , Aortic Aneurysm, Thoracic/surgery , Aortic Valve/surgery , Aortitis/complications , Behcet Syndrome/complications , Sinus of Valsalva , Vascular Surgical Procedures/methods , Adult , Aneurysm, False/diagnosis , Aneurysm, False/etiology , Aortic Aneurysm, Thoracic/diagnosis , Aortic Aneurysm, Thoracic/etiology , Aortitis/diagnosis , Behcet Syndrome/diagnosis , Cardiac Surgical Procedures/methods , Diagnosis, Differential , Echocardiography, Three-Dimensional , Echocardiography, Transesophageal , Humans , Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Cine , MaleABSTRACT
Interest in water soluble COX-2 inhibitors that can be administered intravenously led to the development of novel pro-drugs of a furanone based COX-2 inhibitor 2. Transforming the lactone moiety of the furanone to an imidate or an ortho-ester with a hydrophilic, endogenous appendage resulted in water soluble pro-drugs that converted to the parent drug in vivo.
