International Journal of Legal Medicine最新文献

{"title":"The current state of forensic imaging- clinical forensic imaging.","authors":"Fabrice Dedouit, Mathilde Ducloyer, Jamie Elifritz, Natalie L Adolphi, Grace Wong Yi-Li, Summer Decker, Jonathan Ford, Yanko Kolev, Michael Thali","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03464-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03464-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Clinical forensic imaging could be defined as the use of imaging first realised for medical care as evidence for a judicial purpose. It requires both forensic experts and clinical radiologists to have a good understanding of imaging modalities and indications and a solid knowledge of the correct terminology. This second part of the review describes the main situations in which imaging may be used for forensic purposes, i.e. blunt trauma, penetrating injuries, asphyxia, physical abuse and neglect.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143656799","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biological sex estimation in experimentally burnt patellae: exploring sexual dimorphism through comparative analysis.","authors":"Beatriz Mouga Almeida, Filipa Cortesão Silva, Ana Luísa Santos","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03467-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03467-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The patella has been used in various studies to verify its value in the estimation of biological sex. However, there is limited understanding regarding the alterations the bone undergoes when exposed to the effects of fire and how it affects sexual dimorphism. The current study aims to study the efficacy of three patella measurements, and generate an equation and cut-off points, to estimate the sex of individuals that had their patellae subjected to burning. Furthermore, the applicability of cut-off points from two previous studies was tested. Patellae (n = 32 individuals) from the sub-collection of experimentally burned skeletons at the 21st Century Identified Skeletal Collection were measured with a digital calliper for their maximum height, maximum thickness, and maximum width. The sample comprises 18 females (56.2%) and 14 males (43.8%) with ages at death between 60 and 93 years (x̄ = 78.6 years). The measurements were evaluated through linear discriminant analysis for sex estimation allowing correct classifications between 68.8 and 75%. The sexual dimorphism in both burnt and unburnt patellae was studied and results were significant for maximum height and maximum width. It was concluded that sex estimation is possible in patellae that have been subjected to different degrees of burning and sexual dimorphism is maintained albeit at lower levels compared to the non-burnt patellae. This study brought light into use of experimentally burnt patellae with its possible implications for forensic investigations although further studies with larger sample sizes are needed.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143630414","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Forensic facial reconstruction: A computer tomography study of facial soft tissue thickness in Nigerian adult male multi-ethnic population.","authors":"Nurudeen Adegbite, Manuela Mura, Haliru Shafiu, Christopher Avery, Waqar Ahmed","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03455-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03455-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Facial soft tissue thickness (FSTT) was measured from computer tomography scans of 55 Nigeria adult males. Forensic facial reconstruction (FFR) with own population FSTT values can be vital in recognition of skeletal remains and has been used as an adjunct in forensic science.There are no published FSTT values for this population. Measurements were obtained at 12 mid-sagittal and 19 bilateral points totalling 50 and by use of a software package called RadiAnt. In comparison to previous studies in Africa, measurements were taken from more points and with a diverse age of 18 to 100 years. Mean FSTT values were determined for these combined Nigerian male ethnicities. These values will suffice in FFR for this population and for the Hausa adult male. This population homogenously showed more soft tissue volumes on the left than the right side at all FSTT points with the most relative difference at the frontal eminence and the least at the mid-point of the masseter muscle. The low relative difference at the mid-masseters may relate with the soft floury diets of this population. These combined Nigerian male ethnicities midline FSTT values showed significant differences in the lower third of the face when compared with other population data. The values for the right side of the face shows even more substantial differences at multiple points when compared with published data of other populations. The change with age compares well with other studies. These data will be applicable for FFR in the CNME than data of other populations.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143605006","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Microbiota signature of the lung as the promising bioindicator for drowning diagnosis and postmortem submersion interval estimation.","authors":"Kuo Zeng, Fu-Yuan Zhang, Ming-Zhe Wu, Hao-Miao Yuan, Shu-Kui Du, Jin-Cheng Ying, Yan Zhang, Lin-Lin Wang, Rui Zhao, Da-Wei Guan","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03458-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03458-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Drowning diagnosis and postmortem submersion interval (PMSI) estimation are still major challenges in forensic practice. Our recent studies provided evidence that microbiota successions in multiple organs, including intestine, liver, and brain, were valuable indicators for PMSI estimation. Meanwhile, microbiota in the lung from corpses submerged for 3 days presented obvious difference between drowning and postmortem submersion. However, gaps exist in our understanding of how long this difference lasts and how the decomposer microbial community in the lung changes with progression of decomposition. Here, we characterized the postmortem microbiota in the lung of mice submerged for 0 to 14 days, which were drowned or sacrificed by CO₂ asphyxia. Our study revealed that most samples collected before 3 days postmortem were not qualified enough for sequencing. The microbiota in the lung was largely influenced by the microbes colonized in the aquatic environment. Differences in microbiota between drowning and postmortem submersion faded over decomposition and could be used for drowning diagnosis within 10 days postmortem. Meanwhile, 22 taxa with good discriminative ability were identified to establish the classification model for discriminating drowning and postmortem submersion (AUC = 0.92, accuracy = 81.25%) by random forest algorithm. Twenty other candidates exhibiting obviously temporal changes were selected for PMSI estimation, which yield satisfactory performance (mean absolute errors ± the standard error = 0.976 ± 0.189 d). Altogether, we provide further evidence that microbiota signature of the lung is a promising bioindicator for the forensic death investigations of decomposed bodies recovered from water.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143604934","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Fatal gunshots in the Tri-City metropolitan area, Poland between 1998 and 2021.","authors":"Karol Karnecki, Adrian Wrocławski, Michał Kaliszan, Tomasz Gos","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03459-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03459-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study analyzes 92 firearm fatalities, including 54 suicides and 26 homicides, in the Tri-City area, Poland between 1998 and 2021. The firearm-related death rate was 0.44 per 100,000 residents, which is more than double the published rate for Poland (0.20). During the period under examination, there was an upward trend in the number of suicides and a decline in the number of homicides. In addition, the decrease in gun homicides was associated with rising GDP per capita over the study period, along with other noteworthy-but not statistically significant-interactions between homicides, suicides, and various economic or gun-related factors. Most victims were males (90.2%), who were older on average than the female victims. In 66 cases, there was a single gunshot wound, which was more common in suicides (92.6%) than in homicides (33.3%). The remaining cases, which included 4 suicides and 16 homicides, involved multiple gunshot wounds. In suicides, gunshot wounds to the head were predominant (77.8%) and most often to the right temporal region or mouth. Gunshot wounds to the head were less common in homicides (37.5%) than in suicides but most often located at the left temporal region, the back of the head, or the face. A higher proportion of gunshot wounds to the chest was observed in homicides (34.7%). Short-barreled firearms, most often a semi-automatic pistol, predominated in the analyzed material.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143597016","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Forensic insights into primary pyomyositis: autopsy and post-mortem CT scan based-analysis.","authors":"Chun-Ting Chiang, Yumi Hoshioka, Yohsuke Makino, Maiko Yoshida, Ayumi Motomura, Fumiko Chiba, Suguru Torimitsu, Rutsuko Yamaguchi, Daisuke Yajima, Go Inokuchi, Shigeki Tsuneya, Hirotaro Iwase","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03460-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03460-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>To examine the findings of pyomyositis by computed tomography (CT) imaging at autopsy to establish the correct diagnostic approach for this disease in the postmortem setting.</p><p><strong>Materials and methods: </strong>A total of 6,964 autopsy cases with CT imaging from two forensic center databases were examined to identify primary pyomyositis. Basic demographics, external findings, postmortem CT findings, and autopsy results were reviewed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Ten cases of primary pyomyositis were identified. All of the deceased individuals were older than 40 years of age without definitive evidence of human immunodeficiency virus infection. Five individuals had a history of trauma, with one case of trauma occurring more than 1 year previously. Pyomyositis was mostly located in the extremities. Three individuals showed pyomyositis in more than one muscle group. Only one individual showed signs of infection before the autopsy. Three individuals had grossly identifiable erythema. Nine individuals showed positive imaging findings, such as swelling, fat stranding, decreased density, fluid collection, and gas formation, on a CT scan. One individual had no findings of pyomyositis and this was discovered incidentally.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study shows differences from previous clinical case series of pyomyositis, such as the absence of young age groups and human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome cases, and a unique case of pyomyositis that occurred more than 1 year after a traumatic incident. Grossly identifiable erythema is rare, posing a considerable diagnostic challenge. However, CT imaging is useful in detecting infection.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143585729","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development of artificial intelligence-based algorithms for the process of human identification through dental evidence.","authors":"Cristiana Palmela Pereira, Raquel Carvalho, Diana Augusto, Tomás Almeida, Alexandre P Francisco, Francisco Salvado E Silva, Rui Santos","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03453-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03453-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Forensic Odontology plays a crucial role in medicolegal identification by comparing dental evidence in antemortem (AM) and postmortem (PM) dental records, including orthopantomograms (OPGs). Due to the complexity and time-consuming nature of this process, imaging analysis optimization is an urgent matter. Convolutional neural networks (CNN) are promising artificial intelligence (AI) structures in Forensic Odontology for their efficiency and detail in image analysis, making them a valuable tool in medicolegal identification. Therefore, this study focused on the development of a CNN algorithm capable of comparing AM and PM dental evidence in OPGs for the medicolegal identification of unknown cadavers.</p><p><strong>Materials and methods: </strong>The present study included a total sample of 1235 OPGs from 1050 patients from the Stomatology Department of Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, aged 16 to 30 years. Two algorithms were developed, one for age classification and another for positive identification, based on the pre-trained model VGG16, and performance was evaluated through predictive metrics and heatmaps.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Both developed models achieved a final accuracy of 85%, reflecting high overall performance. The age classification model performed better at classifying OPGs from individuals aged between 16 and 23 years, while the positive identification model was significantly better at identifying pairs of OPGs from different individuals.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The developed AI model is useful in the medicolegal identification of unknown cadavers, with advantage in mass disaster victim identification context, by comparing AM and PM dental evidence in OPGs of individuals aged 16 to 30 years.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143566898","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Enhancing trace DNA recovery from disposable face masks: insights from the COVID-19 era and beyond.","authors":"Salem K Alketbi, Will Goodwin","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03435-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03435-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Trace DNA plays a pivotal role in forensic investigations, serving as a critical tool for linking suspects to criminal activities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, disposable face masks emerged as key items of forensic interest, particularly in cases where suspects used them to conceal their identities. This study evaluates the efficiency of two trace DNA collection methodologies-cotton swabbing and tapelifting-for recovering DNA from face masks. Samples were collected from 50 masks worn by suspects in robbery cases, utilizing the Copan cotton swab (150 C) and the SceneSafe Fast™ minitape (K545). Statistical analysis revealed that minitapes (MT) significantly outperformed cotton swabs (CS), yielding higher DNA concentrations (mean MT: 0.41 ng/µL, CS: 0.17 ng/µL; p < 0.05) and recovering more complete DNA profiles, including full single (FS) and full mixed (FM) profiles (p < 0.05). These findings highlight the superior efficiency of MT, particularly for recovering trace DNA from small or fabric-like surfaces. The study underscores the importance of selecting optimal collection methods in forensic investigations, especially for modern evidence types such as face masks. Recommendations include the routine adoption of minitapes in casework involving face masks and further research into their efficacy on other mask types and under varied environmental conditions. This research offers valuable insights to refine trace DNA recovery strategies, enhancing the reliability of forensic evidence.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143541730","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"From traditional to innovative: implications of cranial non-metric traits in personal identification.","authors":"Andrea Palamenghi, Antonio Aragon-Molina, Giulia Caccia, Debora Mazzarelli, Sofia Alemanno, Ruggero Donida Labati, Fabio Scotti, Vincenzo Piuri, Carlo Pietro Campobasso, Cristina Cattaneo, Danilo De Angelis, Daniele Gibelli","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03462-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03462-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In forensic anthropology, personal identification is mainly performed through a qualitative assessment and comparison of morphological bone and dental features between antemortem and postmortem data. Although non-metric traits have been traditionally considered as individualizing features, their potential has been limitedly investigated. Indeed, frequencies of variants can represent an additional tool to provide probabilities and likelihood ratios that an individual presents a combination of traits, hence quantifying a possible identification. This study investigates the potential of cranial non-metric traits as individualizing features in personal identification, and it describes the application of this probabilistic approach to a sample from a mass fatality which occurred in 2015. 119 crania of males were assessed for scoring 35 non-metric traits by presence and absence. For each cranium, the compound frequencies of independent traits, probabilities and likelihood ratios that a cranium presents a specific blend of traits were calculated. Over 70% of the likelihood ratios exceeded 1,000,000, providing extremely strong evidence that a specific set of traits corresponds to a cranium. Probabilities to find an individual with the set of traits within a group of 528 people (corresponding to the recovered bodies for this case) were extremely low (e.g., 0.006 people out of 528). The considerably high likelihood ratios and low probabilities suggest that combinations of cranial non-metric traits are extremely specific to the single individual, hence they represent valuable individualizing features. Despite this approach does not seem immediately applicable for the resolution of this case because of the dearth of appropriate antemortem images, collecting cranial non-metric frequencies may be worth of further investigation as a supplementary tool to screen potential identities and provide quantitative evidence to the investigators and the judge.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143541799","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Improving forensic healthcare: ARMED, a new telemedical examination.","authors":"Yasmeen M Taalab, Dorothea Kaufmann, Aysche Landmann, Emily Marie Ungermann, Sarah Heinze, Barbara Stöttner, Anastasia Tsaklakidis, Andreas Schroff, Florian Konrad, Alexander Mezger, Sophia Schlenzig, Robert Yen, Kathrin Yen","doi":"10.1007/s00414-025-03463-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-025-03463-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>the Istanbul Convention demands care to victims of violence while upholding forensic standards. Victims, however, often seek medical help at hospitals where the availability of forensic experts is limited. This results in overlooked injuries and lost or damaged evidence, ultimately impacting court proceedings and identification of individuals at risk. The aim of this paper was to establish real-time remote guidance for distant physicians during the forensic examination of violence victims.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Augmented Reality Assisted Medical Evidence Collection and Documentation (ARMED) was established in Heidelberg at the Institute for Forensic and Traffic Medicine (IFTM) in 2023 as an innovative telementoring model. Video-teleconferencing components including a head-mounted device (HMD), a customized software package, hardware devices, and a data management portal were employed to facilitate seamless expert care delivery, data sharing, and to ensure privacy and confidentiality. ARMED platform was evaluated in three partner hospitals with parameters including internet connection stability, clarity of live-streaming and audio-visual communication, the quality of photos, and the safety of data management.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The combination of RealWear Navigator 500 as HMD, a customized version of videoconferencing software, and a portal server system for safe and secure patient data management constituted a robust, user-friendly, and practical telemedicine solution.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>ARMED facilitates real-time communication between healthcare providers and forensic experts, enhancing their ability to recognize and detect injuries effectively. This holds the potential to significantly improve the process of evidence collection for documenting cases of violence, ultimately aiding in the pursuit of justice and the protection of victims.</p>","PeriodicalId":14071,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Legal Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143541801","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}