Relationship of injuries detected in fatal falls with sex, body mass index, and fall height: An autopsy study.

Falls from height are the most common cause of blunt trauma after traffic accidents. The focus of this retrospective study was to analyze the relationship between injuries in fatal falls and fall height, body mass index (BMI), and sex in 206 autopsy reports. Age, sex, weight, height, place of the fall, fall height, period between the incidence and death, external examination findings in the autopsy, intracranial findings, fractures, internal organ injuries, and information about the causes of death were recorded. Accidents and men were the largest groups. Injuries to the upper and lower extremities were frequently detected in accidents. Lower extremity injuries were more common in women. The occurrence of head and neck injuries were rare in overweight individuals. When evaluated by manner of death, there were differences in extremities and posterior body injuries. There was no difference between sex in terms of autopsy findings. It was observed that the injuries increased as the height increased. There was a statistical difference between the BMI groups in terms of liver, rib and sternum injuries. The most common cause of death was head injuries. Many factors have been known to affect injury patterns in cases of falls from height. Fall height, BMI, and gender are just a few of these factors. This study will be beneficial to support the findings of this study with larger-scale studies and statistical modeling that consider more factors affecting injuries in cases of falls.

Legal and ethical responsibilities of physicians in coercive situations, such as natural disasters.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between the physician and the patient is based on the provisions of the proxy agreement. The attitude of the physician and the legal and ethical responsibilities of this attitude in an event of force majeure, such as severe natural disaster (earthquake), during a risky operation should be discussed. The aim of the present study was to present the opinions of the related professions about the subject and to discuss the subject on an ethical and legal ground. METHODS: A total of 207 volunteers including 121 physicians working at the Cerrahpasa Faculty of Medicine at Istanbul University and 86 lawyers registered at the Istanbul Bar Association completed the questionnaires. Statistical analysis of data acquired from the questionnaires was performed using SPSS 21.0. RESULTS: Of the participants, 76.8% stated that abandoning the patient by the physician considering his/her own safety during a severe natural disaster is ethically problematic. However, 68.1% of the participants stated that physicians would not be facing any criminal sanctions in response to his/her attitude. When the answers from both occupational groups were compared separately, it was found that 26.4% of the physicians and 39.5% of the lawyers stated that the act in question has both legal and ethical liability. CONCLUSION: In the present study, no complete consensus was observed either between or within two occupational groups. It was concluded that the meetings in which the subject is discussed and is based on a concrete ground by both occupational groups should be held.