Sarah Stockhausen, Gerhard Kernbach-Wighton, Burkhard Madea, Elke Doberentz
{"title":"[Rare causes of iatrogenic pericardial tamponade - 2 case reports].","authors":"Sarah Stockhausen, Gerhard Kernbach-Wighton, Burkhard Madea, Elke Doberentz","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Two rare causes of iatrogenic pericardial effusions are presented. In the first case, a 61-year-old woman who had undergone laparoscopic surgery for a diaphragmatic hernia was resuscitated without success the next day. As cause of death circulatory failure as a result of post-operative pulmonary embolism was reported. Autopsy results showed that the pericardium and the heart had been sewn to the diaphragm. The suture was torn from the tissue, which caused a hemorrhage into the pericardium and the chest cavity, so that death was diagnosed to be due to cardiac tamponade and hemothorax after an iatrogenic heart injury. In the second case, a 62-year-old man who had developed a massive incisional hernia after treatment of an abdominal gunshot wound underwent open herniotomy with mesh repair. Postoperatively, the man complained about increasing pain and shortness of breath. He was transferred to another hospital for further assessment, where a cardiac tamponade was diagnosed. Autopsy results showed that three of the plastic staples used to fix the mesh had perforated the diaphragm and the pericardium thus injuring the adjacent right ventricle with subsequent perforation and development of a hemopericardium.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"239 1-2","pages":"36-44"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"36123840","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ralf Gille, Frank Ramsthaler, Michael Thali, Julia Strunk, Christoph G Birngruber, Marcel A Verhoff
{"title":"[Stature estimation from teeth and jaw].","authors":"Ralf Gille, Frank Ramsthaler, Michael Thali, Julia Strunk, Christoph G Birngruber, Marcel A Verhoff","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>After the discovery of skeletonized human remains, the estimation of stature is an important element of the so-called \"biological profile\". Typically, long bone lengths are used in regression formulas. If long bones are not available, predictions of stature cannot be made. Human skulls are often the subject of forensic osteological examination, sometimes even detached. Therefore, it seems reasonable to search for skull measurements that have a sufficiently good correlation to stature. The aim of the study presented was to measure odonto-stomatological parameters using post-mortem CT data to check whether the esti- mation of stature was possible on this basis. Three classic tooth dimensions (MD, BL, ZL), two diagonal tooth dimensions (MBDL, DBML) first described by Lund and Mörnstad in 1999, two tooth dimensions defined for the first time in this study (MKDO, DKMO), the mesiodistal index (MDS) and also the palatal arch dimensions (arch length, arch width, molar length and dental length) - each at maxilla and mandible - were digitally measured on a total of 799 teeth of 48 virtual 3-D-reconstructed skulls (33 males and 15 females). For most of the aforementioned measurements no statistically significant relation to stature was found. There were positive correlations by Pearson at a significance level of 99 % (2-sided) at three measurements: ZL 15, MKDO 14 and MKDO 15. Positive correlations by Pearson at a significance level of 95 % (2-sided) could be determined for eight measurements, but an applicable regression formula could not be calculated for any of the parameters. Despite a statistical correlation of a few teeth parameters with body length, they must be considered unsuitable for estimating stature.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"239 1-2","pages":"45-56"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"36123841","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Field study to detect illicit and medicinal drugs in car drivers in Southern and Western Hesse.","authors":"Alexander Paulke, Cora Wunder, Stefan W Toennes","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In the present study, immunochemical tests (Mahsan DrugInspector, DOA4, DOA8, DOA10, Protzek) as well as the detection rate of police checks were evaluated. Urine and blood samples of suspected car drivers were analysed by chromatography-mass spectrometry. Additionally, anonymised urine samples were analysed on a voluntary basis in cases where no legal proceedings were initiated. Toxicological analyses (total unknown screening) were performed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) after hydrolysis, acidic and alkaline extraction and derivatization. A data base for screening 9000 substance entries was applied. In addition, urine samples were analysed using liquid chromatography/ time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-ToF-MS) to screen psychiatric and narcotic drugs. In total, samples of 154 suspects were analysed, of these, 46 samples for no actual reason. In 5 of the latter samples, forensically relevant substances were detected; in two cases the consumption of illicit drugs, i. e. cannabis and methamphetamine, was proved. Of the 154 suspects, 108 were charged with driving under the influence of drugs; in samples of 103 of these cases, illicit drugs were found. Immunochemical pretesting showed posi- tive results in 97 of the 108 cases; in 6 samples, psychiatric drugs (citalopram, doxepin, promethazine, mirtazapine, fluoxetine, venlafaxine) were later identified, which are not detectable by ordinary pretesting systems. Police officers successfully identified 95.4 % of the suspects as drug consumers, which is an excellent result. In practice, pretesting of urine samples using immunochemical techniques proved to be very reliable. The Protzek system in particular corresponded well with the results of the chromatographic analyses. In conclusion, systematic chromatographic-mass spectrometric analysis of urine samples of suspects is recommended to identify car drivers consuming illicit drugs and to obtain data usable in legal proceedings (e. g. suspending of the driving license), which is not always possible when using blood samples in cases of drugs consumed some time ago.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"238 5-6","pages":"173-187"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"35851154","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jan Ortmann, Elke Doberentz, Gerhard Kernbach-Wighton, Burkhard Madea
{"title":"Lethal hypothermia after firing a suicidal shot to the head in a car.","authors":"Jan Ortmann, Elke Doberentz, Gerhard Kernbach-Wighton, Burkhard Madea","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In suicide cases involving an automobile, the car is mostly used as a tool/instrument for the suicide (intoxication by exhaust fumes, crash against solid objects such as a pylon). However, a car is uncommonly also used only as the location for a suicide. In the present case, a 70-year-old man had been found dead on the passenger seat of his car. According to witnesses, the car had not been parked there at the same time of the previous day. During that period, the weather had been dry, with temperatures ranging from -1⁰ C at night to +5⁰ C during the day. The man had shot himself with a small-caliber revolver (so-called bulldog-revolver) almost horizontally in the left temple (transtemporal shot through the frontal lobes). Obviously, the suicide had retained the capability to act at least for a short time, as the revolver was found under his left bottom. As morphological signs of prolonged agony some findings of hypothermia were observed (e. g. Wischnewski spots of the stomach).</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"238 5-6","pages":"188-197"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"35850551","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Benjamin Ondruschka, Sylvia Morgenthal, Jan Dreβler, Ronny Bayer
{"title":"Unusual planned complex suicide committed with a muzzle-loading pistol in combination with subsequent hanging.","authors":"Benjamin Ondruschka, Sylvia Morgenthal, Jan Dreβler, Ronny Bayer","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In Germany, suicides by firearms are not very common in contrast to deaths by hanging and intoxications. The use of historical muzzle-loading firearms in the context of suicides is a rarity. Contact shots from muzzle loaders cause an unusual wound morphology with extensive soot soiling. We report the case of a 59-year-old man, who committed a planned complex suicide by shooting into his mouth with a replica percussion gun in combination with hanging. The gunshot injury showed strong explosive effects in the oral cavity with fractures of the facial bones and the skull associated with cerebral evisceration (so-called Krönlein shot). Due to the special constellation of the case with hanging immediately after the shot, external bleeding from the head injuries was only moderate. Therefore, the head injuries could be assessed and partially reconstructed already at the scene.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"238 5-6","pages":"207-217"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"35850554","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Histological and immunohistochemical investigations on infantile pancreas in cases of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).","authors":"Elke Doberentz, Judith Feiser, Burkhard Madea","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is defined as unexpected death of a previously healthy infant with no cause of death being established. Comprehensive histological and immunohistochemical investigations are required subsequent to autopsy. In 18 cases of sudden infant death, histological (H&E, PAS and iron stain) and immunohistochemical investigations (CD68, CD45RO and LCA) were performed regarding a possible role of pancreatitis in SIDS and histomorphological alterations of the pancreatic islets, respectively. In all the investigated cases, no inflammatory changes of the infantile pancreatic tissue and no other significant histomorphological alterations of the pancreatic islets were found.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"238 3-4","pages":"136-146"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"36194048","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Fatal injuries caused by a bull.","authors":"Jan Ortmann, Elke Doberentz, Burkhard Madea","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Fatalities caused by cattle occur relatively often in rural areas and mostly show sharp and blunt injuries. In the presented case, a 61-year-old farmer was found dead in a cowshed together with an untied bull. Autopsy revealed severe hemorrhages and massive chest trauma with multiple bilateral rib fractures. The cause of death was severe chest trauma. In the presented case, death was not brought about by the bull's horns but by butts to the man's chest.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"238 3-4","pages":"99-106"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"36194552","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Benjamin Ondruschkal, Denis van Ngoc, Jan DreBler, Steffen Bratanou
{"title":"Skide godt! - Phenomenon Olsen gang from a forensic point of view.","authors":"Benjamin Ondruschkal, Denis van Ngoc, Jan DreBler, Steffen Bratanou","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>The Olsen gang is a 14-episode film series about a gang of three thieves, who are very imaginative, but often unsuccessful in their burglary attempts \"to score a real hit\". In Denmark, the German Democratic Republic and Poland the films about Egon Olsen were blockbusters and still enjoy cult status there. Apart from a small amount of popular literature, the phenomenon of the Olsen gang has never been scientifically investigated from a forensic point of view so far.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The films, produced between 1968 and 1998 (more than 22 hours of footage), were evaluated and compared with each other under forensic, legal and forensic-psychiatric aspects. The cooperation between the three scientific disciplines was intended to add a new perspective to the crime comedies.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A wide variety of medically relevant facts are presented in the movies. Even with all their criminal enthusiasm the Olsen gang commits almost no crimes against anyone's physical integrity. The films show legally comparable crimes, especially cases of severe band theft. Based on the criminal offenses committed, no gang member suffers from a psychiatric disorder fulfilling the criteria defined in Sections 20, 21 German Criminal Code.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The great international success of the Olsen gang is certainly attributable to the imaginative theft plans for \"fund-raising\" and their almost pitiful failure. Many forensically relevant aspects are not shown in a realistic way. The accumulation of offenses and periods of imprisonment could result in preventive detention. The offenders are driven by normal psychological motives.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"238 3-4","pages":"107-119"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"36194555","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jennifer Nahrmann, Jens Amnendt, Richard Zehner, Markus Parzeller
{"title":",,Flora and fauna\" in criminalistics - an analysis of the current use and relevance of non-human biological trace materials in criminal proceedings.","authors":"Jennifer Nahrmann, Jens Amnendt, Richard Zehner, Markus Parzeller","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The analysis of biological, non-human trace specimens can contribute significantly to solving a criminal case. The present study searches the relevant German criminal, forensic, legal and biological literature, focusing on animal hairs, insects and plant fragments, and assesses the current opportunities of this special forensic branch and its acceptance and relevance for the evidence in court. It turns out that the analysis of these trace materials has an enormous range of potential applications which should not only be reflected in the forensic sciences, but also in the criminal trials. However, in the legal literature and legal annotations the topic of biological, non-human trace materials is addressed only sporadically. To derive the greatest practical benefit from the developments of forensic biology, the knowledge about the use of biological, non-human trace specimens should be promoted for the criminal proceedings. Investigators, judges, prosecutors and defense lawyers should be more thoroughly informed and become trained by forensic biologists.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"238 3-4","pages":"81-98"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"36194551","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Vera Sterzik, Vanessa Wild, Weishaupt Julia, Thomas Tatschner, Bernhard Babel, Michael Bohnert
{"title":"Fatal visit to the general practitioner.","authors":"Vera Sterzik, Vanessa Wild, Weishaupt Julia, Thomas Tatschner, Bernhard Babel, Michael Bohnert","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A 31-year-old female asthmatic patient received an infusion of metamizole and tramadol for chronic pain at a GP surgery. After a few minutes, the patient developed breaing difficulties and died in spite of resuscitation measures. The general practitioner was suspected of medical malpractice. Medico-legal investigations confirmed the assumption that death was caused by anaphylacitic shock. In spite of temporary intubation into the oesophagus no evidence of medical malpractice was found, however.</p>","PeriodicalId":8171,"journal":{"name":"Archiv fur Kriminologie","volume":"238 3-4","pages":"120-127"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2016-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"36194554","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}