1/4. Strangulation injuries.Strangulation accounts for 10% of all violent deaths in the united states. Many people who are strangled survive. These survivors may have minimal visible external findings. Because of the slowly compressive nature of the forces involved in strangulation, clinicians should be aware of the potential for significant complications including laryngeal fractures, upper airway edema, and vocal cord immobility. survivors are most often assaulted during an incident of intimate partner violence or sexual assault, and need to be specifically asked if they were strangled. Many survivors of strangulation will not volunteer this information. Accurate documentation in the medical chart is essential to substantiate a survivor's account of the incident. Medical providers are a significant community resource with the responsibility to provide expert information to patients and other systems working with survivors of strangulation. This case study reviews a strangulation victim who exhibited some classic findings.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = nature (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/4. Death following atypical compression of the neck.The authors present 3 cases of asphyxia caused by atypical compression of the neck by the metal bed bars fitted at the sides of the bed to prevent falling out. These occurred in 3 elderly women living in nursing homes, confined to bed by severe neuropsychiatric disturbances. In all 3 cases, the minor nature of the skin lesions and absence of blood infiltrations in the anatomic structures of the neck had made it difficult to diagnose the cause of death. Inspection of the rest homes, together with the autopsy findings (acute pulmonary emphysema, conjunctival petechiae, and dark, fluid blood), enabled identification of asphyxia as the cause of death and its causal agent as the bed bars.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = nature (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/4. Foreign body aspiration: experience at the University Pediatric Hospital.Fifty eight patients were admitted to the University Pediatric Hospital with the diagnosis of foreign body aspiration from August 1986 to January 1991. Of this 58 admissions, 40 records were analyzed for incidence, clinical and radiological manifestations, morbidity and nature of the foreign material in an effort to compare our findings with those of other centers, including another previous study in our institution. Our data reveals that the event of aspiration of a foreign body was most common between 1 to 2 years of age, this comprises 18 (45%) of the cases; male to female ratio was 1:3; 17 (42.5%) cases were diagnosed during the first 24 hours of the event and another 42.5% were diagnosed after 48 hours. Coughing and a choking episodes were the most common signs of presentation with hyperaeration of the lung as the main radiological finding. The left main stem bronchus as the lodgement site and the peanut as the foreign object were the most common findings. The mortality ratio was 7.5%. It is important to make parents and health providers aware of patients at risk and knowledge of basic life support measures.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = nature (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/4. The silver bullet.A case of autoerotic asphyxiation is presented. The incident demonstrates 12 of the 13 characteristics particular to autoerotic asphyxias. The elements of attire and bondage used are unique in comparison with previously reported cases. The addictive nature of this behavior is well demonstrated in the victim's sexual history. Interestingly, his spouse was aware of his autoerotic activity.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = nature (Clic here for more details about this article) |