[Disputable issues of application of the medical criterion «persistent loss of general work capability¼ in determining the severity of harm caused to human health]. / Spornye voprosy primeneniya meditsinskogo kriteriya «stoikaya utrata obshchei trudosposobnosti¼ pri opredelenii tyazhesti vreda, prichinennogo zdorov'yu cheloveka.

The purpose of the work is to identify challenging issues that arise during the forensic determination of the severity of harm caused to human health, which entailed permanent loss of general ability to work, by means of a content analysis of the existing regulatory documents, results of forensic medical examinations and the formulation of proposals for their modification and supplementing with regard to elimination of existing contradictions. The analysis of expert practice on a selective study of 1.000 expert conclusions for 2016-2022 is given, which showed that, when assessing the severity of harm caused to human health in a number of cases (3.3%) in identical situations, various options for establishing harm caused to human health are possible depending on its severity. The conclusion was made that the requirement specified in the clause 6.11 of the Medical Criteria for Determining the Severity of Harm Caused to Human Health (approved by the Order of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation No. 194H dated April 24, 2008, Moscow) to determining serious harm as causing persistent loss of general work capability by not less than one third, regardless of the outcome, in all cases listed in paragraphs 6.11.1-6.11.9, cannot be unconditionally applied in expert practice.

[Criteria for assessing the severity of the lesion and the outcome of the electric injury, depending on the parameters of the current and its pathways]. / Kriterii otsenki tyazhesti porazheniya i iskhoda elektrotravmy v zavisimosti ot parametrov toka i putei ego prokhozhdeniya.

The purpose of the work is to establish the relationship between the magnitudes of the electric current and clinical and physiological manifestations (outcome) on the basis of data from special literature. When performing forensic medical examinations, questions are often raised about the possibility of saving the life of an injured person in the provision of timely medical care, as well as the possibility of taking active actions after causing damages. The totality of the above information will enable to answer these questions reasonably. Besides, the data summarized in the article are necessary when planning experimental work in the study of electropathology and when conducting biomedical tests.

[About the term «newborn¼ in forensic medicine]. / K ponyatiyu «novorozhdennyi¼ v sudebnoi meditsine.

The aim of this work is to prove necessity of using the term «newborn¼ as common both in forensic medicine and general medicine (from the moment of birth till 28th day), to show legality of using the term «signs of recent birth¼, to demonstrate the importance of understanding not only the higher border in definition of neonatal period but its initial moment that is necessary to solve some investigative questions and determine legal capacity of people and provide criminal justice defense of citizens' life and health.

[The phenomenon of the formation of a ricocheted buckshot of a negative angle of reflection]. / Fenomen obrazovaniya rikoshetirovavshei kartech'yu otritsatel'nogo ugla otrazheniya.

The purpose of the study is to establish the possibility, determine the conditions and parameters for the formation of a negative angle of reflection of a firearm after a ricochet from the surface of an obstacle based on the results of our own experimental studies. Expert and law enforcement practice shows that after a shot, firearms, both before interaction with an obstacle and after a ricochet, move in space in the same plane with respect to the surface of the obstacle, forming a reflection angle with a positive or zero degree value. As a result of ballistic experiments, the possibility of forming a negative angle of reflection by ricocheted buckshot was established, the conditions and parameters for the occurrence of this pattern were determined. The identified ballistic «Gusentsov phenomenon¼ has an important interdisciplinary scientific and practical significance for further expanding knowledge and understanding of external and internal ballistics and can be successfully used in scientific, practical, forensic and educational activities.

[On the need for a unified approach in assessing the muscle contraction swelling (idiomuscular tumor) in determining the time since death coming]. / O neobkhodimosti unifitsirovannogo podkhoda k otsenke valika myshechnogo sokrashcheniya (idiomuskulyarnaya opukhol') pri opredelenii vremeni nastupleniya smerti.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this work was to study the response of muscles to mechanical irritation with the establishment of the maximum time of its occurrence within 2 to 15 hours of the post-mortem period in persons of mature, senile and elderly age with the development of an algorithm for its study. This work presents the data of a study of 345 corpses of mature, senile and elderly age with a precisely defined time of death coming within 2 to 15 hours of the post-mortem period. All studies were divided into 8 age groups. It was found that the response of muscles to mechanical irritation should be studied on all upper and lower extremities (both shoulders and both hips). A clear statistically significant difference in the height of the idiomuscular tumor depending on the time since death coming was not found in any of the studied age groups. The dependence of the muscle contraction swelling time appearance on the period of death and age of the deceased was established. Therefore, in the presence of a muscle contraction swelling the death time of adults who died at the age of 18-67 years (confidence level of at least 95%) is less than 10-12 hours and in its absence more than 10-12 hours. At the age of 68-97 years (confidence level of at least 95%), the presence of a muscle contraction swelling indicates the time of death less than 8-10 hours, and its absence more than 8-10 hours.

[Estimation of time after death by the muscle contraction swelling (idiomuscular tumor) in children and adolescents (4-17 years old)]. / Opredelenie vremeni nastupleniya smerti po valiku myshechnogo sokrashcheniya (idiomuskulyarnoi opukholi) u detei i podrostkov (4­17 let).

OBJECTIVE: Study of muscles response to mechanical irritation with the establishment of the maximum time of its occurrence for 2 to 15 hours of the postmortem period in children and adolescents who died at the age of 4 to 17 years. The the study data of 228 corpses of children and adolescents aged from 4 to 17 years with a precisely established time of death - from 2 to 15 hours are presented. Three age groups are identified: 1st - from 4 to 7 years, 2nd - from 8 to 11th and 3rd - from 12 to 17 years old. As a result of the studies it was found that the response of muscles to mechanical stress in children does not depend on gender and depends on age. The time of occurrence of a muscle contraction swelling was determined for each studied age groups. The obtained results for the first time give reliable evidence of a postmortem time limit for the appearance of a muscle contraction swelling in children of various age groups.

[Study of certain electrophysical properties of adipose tissue in the postmortem period when working with a direct current source]. / Izuchenie nekotorykh elektrofizicheskikh svoistv zhirovoi tkani v posmertnom periode pri rabote s istochnikom postoyannogo toka.

Some features of changes in the electrophysical properties of adipose tissue of animal origin in the postmortem period when working with direct-current sources are considered. OBJECTIVE: Evaluate experimentally the possibilities of registering changes in the electro-physical properties of biological tissues using a direct current source when working with a specific resistance as well as to identify the possible recorded changes in biological tissues when a reverse electromotive force and polarization phenomena occur. At the first stage the fatty subcutaneous layer of a pig was used as samples of adipose tissue which is closely similar to human adipose tissue in composition. In total, during the period of the experimental study the 340 samples of pork fat from two different animals were prepared and used with a reliably unknown slaughter age. As a constant current source in the experiment it was used a system made on the basis of a standard alkaline battery with a declared nominal voltage of 9 V supplemented with necessary radio components. The changes were recorded daily with a digital multi-meter once a day for 10 days. At the end of the experiment the parameters of the electro-physical properties of biological samples were determined using an available direct current source. It was revealed and recorded a clear dynamics of changes in electrophysical parameters associated with the duration of material storage.

[Determination of the death time in children (1-3 years old) by the muscle contraction swelling (idiomuscular tumor)]. / Opredelenie vremeni nastupleniya smerti u detei (1­3 goda) po valiku myshechnogo sokrashcheniya (idiomuskulyarnaya opukhol').

THE AIM OF THE STUDY: Was to research the muscles response in children during three years of their life to mechanical stimulation with evaluation of the maximum time of its occurrence from 2 to 15 hours of the postmortem period. Assessment of the muscles response to mechanical stress is one of the methods for determining the time of death coming. For the deceased of mature age, there is very little scientific data on this topic and for children and adolescents there is none at all. The results of a study of 244 children corpses aged 1 to 3 years with a precisely established time of death within 2 to 15 hours of the postmortem period are presented. Two 2 age groups have been identified: 1st - from 1 to 2 years, 2nd - from 2 to 3 years. It was determined that the response of muscles to mechanical stress in children depends on age and does not depend on gender. The time of occurrence of the muscle contraction swelling for each age group was established. The results of the study are the first reliable evidence of the postmortem time limit of muscle contraction swelling onset in children of different age groups.

[Problems of forensic medical assessment of neurological manifestations of injury of the caudal spine and ways to solve them]. / Problemy sudebno-meditsinskoi otsenki nevrologicheskikh proyavlenii ushiba kaudal'nykh otdelov spinnogo mozga i puti ikh resheniya.

The aim of the work is to consider the problematic issues of forensic medical assessment of neurological manifestations of injure of the caudal spine. The current edition of the Medical criteria of characteristics doesn't contain clear qualification and interpretation of definitions of the health severity in patients with injury of the caudal spine. Proposed to determine the health damage by the outcome in accordance with the degree of persistent loss of general ability to work when examining spine injuries with clinically established neurological deficits in the absence of danger to human life.

[Assessment of effect of underlying skim-muscule flap on damage to non-biological targets by a ricocheting bullet and buckshot during a shot from smooth-bore weapons]. / Otsenka vliyaniya kozhno-myshechnogo loskuta na povrezhdeniya nebiologicheskikh mishenei rikoshetirovavshei pulei i kartech'yu pri vystrele iz gladkostvol'nogo oruzhiya.

The purpose of the work is to determine the advisability of using a skin-muscle flap as an imitator of a human body under a dense cotton target when modeling gunshot injuries resulting from ricochet of a bullet and buckshot when fired from a smooth-bore weapon through clothing. We conducted a ballistic experiment on the formation of gunshot injuries of dense cotton targets themselves, as well as with the underlying skin-muscle flap, formed when a 12-gauge hunting rifle is shot and the subsequent ricochet of bullets and buckshot. As a result of a comprehensive study, the absence of the effect of the underlying skin-muscle flap on the average values of most parameters of gunshot injuries of non-biological targets (p<0.01) was established. The results can be used in planning and conducting of experimental research in the field of forensic ballistics.

[The current state of forensic medical expertise and the experimental studies of the after-penetration guhshot wound]. / Sovremennoe sostoianie sudebno-meditsinskoi ékspertizy i éksperimental'nykh issledovanii zapregradnoi ognestrel'noi travmy.

This article reports the results of the analysis of the literature publications illustrating the current state of forensic medical expertise of gunshot injuries formed as a consequence of the interaction of the projectile with the obstacle. Also presented are the results of the experimental studies in this field and the prospects for their further development. The completeness of the solution of the topical problems of forensic medical ballistics is estimated. Taken together, the literature data and the results of the authors' original investigations provided the objective grounds for carrying out the experimental studies of gunshot injuries resulting from ricocheting bullets and shotgun pellets depending on the conditions and circumstances of the shot.

[The modeling of the ricochet shot fired from a light weapon]. / Modelirovanie rikosheta pri vystrele iz strelkovogo oruzhiia.

The objective of the present study was to choose the optimal method for the modeling of the glance of a bullet after hitting a target under conditions of the laboratory experiment. The study required the designing and construction of an original device for the modeling of the rebound effect of a light-firearm shot under experimental conditions. The device was tested under conditions of the laboratory experiment. The trials have demonstrated the possibility of using barriers of different weight and dimensions in the above device, their positioning and fixation depending on the purpose of the experiment, dynamic alteration of its conditions with due regard for the safety and security arrangements to protect the health and life of the experimenters without compromising the statistical significance and scientific validity of the results of the experiments.

[Vishnevsky's spots: the history of discovery and the modern theories of their development (the analytical review)].

The objective of the present study was to analyse the modern pathogenetic theories of the mechanisms underlying the development of the lesions in the gastric mucosa (the so-called Vishnevsky's spots) under effect of overcooling. It is emphasized that none of the currently available theories comprehensively accounts for different forms and scenarios of the development of Vishnevsky's spots.

[Forensic medical diagnosis and conclusions in the case of nose bone fracture with blood aspiration into the respiratory tract].

The authors consider the variants of the formulation of forensic medical diagnosis and expert conclusions in the cases of death among the victims of nasal bone fractures and blood aspiration proposed by different researchers. They emphasize the inadmissibility of the formal logical approach in such situations and the necessity of pathogenetic analysis of each concrete case for the elucidation of nosological forms and syndromes responsible for the fatal outcome.

[The theory of postmortem rigidity: the history and an original concept].

The original theory of postmortem rigidity has been developed and substantiated based on the concept of postmortem muscular contracture. It is postulated that the unrestricted growth of Ca2+ concentration in myoplasm of contractile cells during the immediate postmortal period brings the actin-myosine complex to the force generation state without subsequent relaxation.

[About some features of formation of "spots of Vishnevsky" in general hypothermia].

The article describes the features of formation of "spots of Vishnevsky", in general hypothermia. It is proved that the wedge shape of hemorrhages in the gastric mucosa caused by swelling and discrepancy of the paries of stomach pits with the filling of forming wedge-shaped cavity with blood from the arrosive capillaries. It is noted that the dynamics of accumulation of PAS-positive material in the gastric pits in the gastric mucosa in case of total of hypothermia is directly dependent on the growth of intracellular acidosis and disintegration of plasmolemma of parietal cells.

[The propriety of establishing the fact of neonatality based on the examination of the child's corpse].

It is shown based on the historical and legal analysis that the designation of the child's status as a newborn infant throughout the period of its neonatal life till violent death "at or immediately after births" is the exclusive prerogative of the law-enforcement authorities. An original approach has been developed and recommended for the introduction into the expert practice. According to this proposal facts and arguments in the "Expert conclusions" should be formulated so as to avoid mentioning the child as newborn and to indicate only the duration of its extrauterine life. Such an approach leaves it to the law-enforcement authorities to decide in each concrete case whether the child should be designated as a newborn infant or not.

[Experimental simulation of blunt cardiac trauma].

This paper was designed to analyse the main experimental models of blunt cardiac trauma proposed during a period of more than 100 years beginning from the study of the Italian scientist Felice Meola dated to the 1870s till the present time. The analysis demonstrated that even a mild injury to the anterior chest wall in the projection of the heart may cause serious changes in hemodynamics and ECG characteristics. It was shown that various methods employed to simulate blunt cardiac trauma place potential constraints related to the design of experiments.

[Characteristics of skin and bone injuries in the cadavers inflicted by rat teeth].

The authors describe the morphological picture of skin and bone injuries inflicted by rat bites. Analysis of traces left by rat incisors is presented. Mechanism of their action and conditions for the appearance of injuries on human cadavers is considered.

[The theory of cardiac lesions from blunt chest injury].

The main theories of myocardial lesions associated with a blunt chest injury proposed starting from the XIXth century till the present time are considered based on the overview of the literature data. It is shown that the theory of selective mechanical activation of ATP-dependent K+ channels is most promising for further investigations into the mechanisms of myocardial dysfunction resulting from blunt chest injuries. The authors emphasize the absence of the universally accepted theory explaining the mechanism behind traumatic cardiac troubles and its fatal outcome despite numerous studies of cardiac lesions in patients with a blunt chest injury. It dictates the necessity of further research, both clinical and experimental, for a deeper insight into the problem.