Detection of kidney damage in living persons and their forensic assessment

Abstract

The structure of the pathology of the kidneys of a traumatic nature was studied, revealed in the injured living persons sent by the investigation and the court for forensic medical examination. The studied material was data on 49 cases of traumatic kidney injuries among 4,200 forensic medical examinations performed in 2021 in the department of examination of victims, accused and other persons of the St. Petersburg Bureau of Forensic Medical Examination. It was found that kidney injury is a rare (1.2 %) pathology in the forensic medical examination of living persons. Such injuries, as a rule, are formed with a massive combined injury to the body (car, falling from a height). In cases of local injuries of the abdomen, lower back or pelvis (even with fractures of the pelvic bones), kidney damage is extremely rare. The diagnosis of "kidney injury" made in the clinic is not objectively confirmed in all cases of forensic medical examinations. This is due to the lack of a full description in medical documents of objective diagnostic signs of renal pathology.