Unravelling the enigma: Autopsy challenges in alleged snakebite deaths.

Autor: Yadav J; Department Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, AIIMS Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. Electronic address: jayanthi.fmt@aiimsbhopal.edu.in., Moirangthem S; Department Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, AIIMS Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. Electronic address: sangitachanu480@gmail.com., Vijayakumar S; Department Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, AIIMS Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. Electronic address: sibivijay15@gmail.com., Chaurasia JK; Department of Pathology, AIIMS Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. Electronic address: jai.patho@aiimsbhopal.edu.in., V P; Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Manipal Tata Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India., Jahan A; Department Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, AIIMS Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. Electronic address: kazinath.jahan@gmail.com.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Forensic science international [Forensic Sci Int] 2024 Nov; Vol. 364, pp. 112228. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Sep 10.
DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112228
Abstrakt: Snakebites account for a substantial public health burden in India, contributing to 80 % of global snakebite fatalities. This case series explores the intricacies of two alleged neurotoxic snakebite deaths, delving into the complexities of diagnosing neurotoxic snakebite deaths in India through meticulous medico-legal autopsies. Despite initial suspicions and circumstantial evidence suggesting snakebite involvement, the autopsies revealed surprising causes of death. The article discusses challenges in accurately attributing deaths to snakebites, and the potential for false claims, and underscores the crucial role of Forensic pathologists in dispelling enigmas. Forensic pathologists are urged to maintain an unbiased approach, allowing postmortem findings to guide conclusions amidst deliberate attempts to mislead. The cases described highlight that ruling out snake bites in cases with positive history is as challenging as opining a case of neurotoxic snake bite as they are mainly the diagnosis of exclusion in autopsy.
Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and or publication of this article.
(Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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