Svechnikov's sign as an indicator of drowning in immersed bodies changed by decomposition: an autopsy study
| Autor: | Vladimir Zivkovic, Dragan Babić, Slobodan Nikolić |
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| Rok vydání: | 2012 |
| Předmět: |
Difficult problem
Adult Male medicine.medical_specialty Forensic pathology Adolescent Sphenoid Sinus Aortic root Poison control Hypophyseal fossa Autopsy Fresh Water Suction Hemolysis Pathology and Forensic Medicine Young Adult Cause of Death Immersion medicine SPHENOID SINUSES Humans Prospective Studies Forensic Pathology Sinus (anatomy) Aorta Aged Aged 80 and over Drowning business.industry General Medicine Anatomy Middle Aged Surgery medicine.anatomical_structure Postmortem Changes Female business Tunica Intima |
| Zdroj: | Forensic science, medicine, and pathology. 9(2) |
| ISSN: | 1556-2891 |
| Popis: | Bodies recovered from water often present as a difficult problem in forensic pathology. The aim of this study was to examine the presence and amount of free liquid in the sphenoid sinus in cases of freshwater drowning, and to compare this to the amount found in putrefied bodies recovered from freshwater, as well as in putrefied bodies found in an indoor environment. Free liquid from the sphenoid sinuses was aspirated using a syringe and a needle, after piercing the hypophyseal fossa. Non-putrefied drowning cases were also examined for hemolytic staining of the intima of the aortic root. In 29 non-putrefied cases of freshwater drowning there was 1.36 ± 1.48 ml in the sphenoid sinuses, with 21 of them having hemolytic staining of aortic intima. In putrefied bodies recovered from freshwater (22 cases) there was 1.26 ± 1.40 ml within the sphenoid sinuses, and in putrefied bodies found in an indoor environment (52 cases), there was significantly less—0.57 ± 0.92 ml. Free liquid in the sphenoid sinuses (Svechnikov’s sign) may be considered a vital reaction in drowning non-putrefied cases. Hemolytic staining of the aortic intima could be a significant sign of freshwater drowning. In putrefied bodies recovered from water, an amount of 0.55 ml of free liquid in the sphenoid sinuses may imply that the victim was alive upon their contact with the water, but the presence of free liquid in the sphenoid sinuses does not necessarily indicate that drowning had been the cause of death. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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