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4090 midterm 2 > foresnsic pathology > Flashcards

foresnsic pathology Flashcards

1
Q

pathology

A

science of the cause and effect of diseases

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2
Q

pathologist

A

medical doctor who studies and diagnoses diseases in people

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3
Q

forensic pathology

A

science of the cause of disease and trauma that leads to death

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4
Q

forensic pathologist

A

medical doctor or pathologist who studies the cause of death by examining a corpse

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5
Q

autopsy

A

standardized dissection of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death

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6
Q

positive confirmatory identification

A

objective evidence: fingerprints, dental records (need antemortem sample for reference), DNA, medical prostheses-serialized and barcoded

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7
Q

presumptive identification

A

reasonable basis of identity
use presumptive methods to narrow down search for a positive ID
mitochondrial DNA, physical attributes (age, sex, hair color), tattoos, scars, birthmarks piercings, family ID, personal belongings

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8
Q

death investigation

A

purpose is to determine the cause, mechanism, and manner of death

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9
Q

cause of death

A

injury, disease, or trauma which leads to a person’s death
possibly a sequence of events
most recent is called the mechanism
older conditions lead to most recent
ex: complications during coronary bypass surgery (immediate) as a consequence of a rupture of the heart’s lining due to tissue death from lack of oxygen (proximate) as a consequence of coronary artery disease (proximate)
ex: exanguination (immediate) as a consequence of a gunshot wound to the chest (proximate)

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10
Q

mechanism of death

A

physiological abnormality that directly results in the death
most recent cause
exsanguination, cardia arrhythmia

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11
Q

manner of death

A

the way to which the causes of death came to be
explains the circumstances surrounding the death
may describe criminal intent
who is responsible

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12
Q

5 different rulings for manner of death

A

homicide, suicide, accidental, natural, unknown
manner of initial event determines the ultimate manner of death

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13
Q

death investigator systems

A

the coroner system, the medical examiner system
up to the state

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14
Q

coroner

A

generally elected
not required to be a physician
if not physician, must consult with forensic pathologist to perform an autopsy

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15
Q

ME

A

forensic pathologist

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16
Q

death investigations

A

determine cause and manner of death
review medical history (could it have contributed?)
determination of injuries that were incurred postmortem
review witness statements (suicidal red flags?)
scene examination (not always practical, use photos to determine postmortem movement, cause of death, time of death)
autopsy

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17
Q

autopsy

A

seeing with ones own eyes
external/ visual examination (classification of trauma)
internal examination and dissection (hospital and medico-legal

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18
Q

hospital autopsy

A

conducted based on the doctor’s request
family permission

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19
Q

medico-legal autopsy

A

medical investigation of death for legal purposes
unexpected/sudden death
unnatural death
suspicious death

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20
Q

external/visual examination

A

collection and description of any clothing
photographs of body clothed and unclothed
detailed examination of entire body
old wounds and scars
tattoos
more attention to this step in medico-legal vs. hospital autopsy because evidence may be present
sometimes autopsy is dictated

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21
Q

trauma notation in external/visual examination

A

forms, sketches, photos, measurements
gunshot wounds indicated as exits or entrances
path of bullet through the body
defensive or other wounds
determine they type of wound
size, shape, type
measure dimensions (length, width, depth)
show position relative to anatomical landmarks

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22
Q

defensive wounds

A

produced when a person attempts to protect themselves from attack
usually involving a knife or sharp object

23
Q

limitations of identifying trauma to the human body

A

decomposition
may be difficult to determine type of wound
trauma accelerates decomposition because of insects
body not in original state - alteration
penetration variations
size of wound may not correlate to size of object that created it

24
Q

classification of trauma

A

mechanical, thermal, chemical, electrical

25
Q

mechanical trauma

A

force is applied to tissue (skin or bone)
body is altered due to force
physical change

26
Q

types of mechanical trauma

A

sharp force
blunt force
asphyxia

27
Q

sharp force trauma

A

caused by sharp instruments
signifcantly less force needed to cause injury than with a blunt object

28
Q

identifying sharp force trauma

A

edges of wound are clean
no tissue bridging (tissue connected between edges of wound)
unusual for skin around wound to be bruised, unless hilt mark of knife
cause/mechanism of death might be exanguination

29
Q

types of sharp force trauma

A

incised wounds, stab/puncture wounds, slash wounds, defensive wounds

30
Q

incised wounds (incisions)

A

long, not deep, oval, cut, opening, slit, subsurface tissue is exposed

31
Q

stab/puncture wounds

A

deep with a lot of length, may be the general shape of the object that made it
may see hilt mark in violent stabbing
size of injury is not always indicative of the size of the instrument

32
Q

slash wounds

A

long and superficial
linear not oval
hesitation marks (suicide)
slit throat

33
Q

defensive wounds

A

wounds produced when a person attempts to protect themselves from a attack
usually involving knife or sharp object

34
Q

blunt force trauma

A

dull or non sharpened objects
baseball bat, brick, bullet, projectile
usually more force necessary than with a sharp force trauma wound

35
Q

types of blunt force trauma

A

lacerations, contusions, abrasion, firearm injuries, fracture, rupture of vital organs (internal damage)

36
Q

lacerations

A

tears in the tissue
edges aren’t clean
bridging of tissue

37
Q

contusion (bruise)

A

accumulation of blood in the tissue under the skin
color changes give a rough estimate of time
assuming person is health
dark blue/ purple in 1-1.8 hrs
blue/brown in 1-2 days
green in 2-3 days
yellow in 3-7 days

38
Q

abrasion

A

scraping of skin surface
superficial

39
Q

fracture

A

breaking of bones

40
Q

rupture of vital organs

A

internal dammage

41
Q

firearms injuries

A

projectiles, gases, unburned powder, burned powder
entry wounds smaller and more regular than exit wound
pathway inside body may not be straight
powder burns are close range, show stippling/tattooing, on entry only, powder penetrates skin and cannot be wiped off
contact muzzle imprint (contusion)
contact star shaped laceration (stellate pattern) due to gases
both contacts indicate potential DNA evidence on gun on muzzle and front and inside barrel
due to contact of gun with skin

42
Q

asphyxia

A

body deprived of oxygen
result of suffocation (blockage of major airways (nose and mouth)
strangulation (manual or ligature compression of the neck) leaving behind physical evidence

43
Q

thermal trauma

A

extreme hot or cold
two types: hypothermia (too much exposure to cold) or hyperthermia (too much exposure to heat, child left in hot car)
burns (rare- usually due to CO poisoning) can sometimes cause massive tissue damage or swelling of airways causing suffocation

44
Q

chemical trauma

A

death resulting from interaction of chemicals with the human body
external (acid of alkaline burns)
internal (toxicology)
drugs, cyanide, arsenic
asphyxia (carbon monoxide, body is cherry pink), oxygen in air is replaced by another gas

45
Q

electrical trauma

A

electricity can cause ventricular fibrillation
random quivering of the heart that does not properly pump blood through the body

46
Q

rigor mortis

A

external/visual examination
stiffening of body after death
calcium buildup
muscles release upon decomposition
onset 2-6 hours after death
release ~24 hours after death
rate depends on antemortem activity and temp

47
Q

liver mortis

A

external/visual exam
postmortem lividity
settling of blood due to gravity after the heart no longer circulates it
purplish/bluish discoloration of skin
does not occur where pressure is applied (body lying on back will not show discoloration on area in contact with floor)
can show if a body was moved

48
Q

petechiae (tardier spots)

A

external/visual exam
pinpoint hemorrhages found around eyes, lining of mouth, and throat
hanging/strangulation victims
tiny blood vessels have burst due to pressure

49
Q

specimens taken during external/visual exam

A

ligatures (leave any knots intact and cut around knot)
trace on clothing or body
dna on body (blood, saliva, semen)
for DNA analysis: pulled head hairs with root and fingernail clippings
for trace analysis: other hairs (eyelashes, pubic, eyebrows) and GSR (stubs of hands)

50
Q

internal exam and dissection

A

opening chest to examine internal organs
removed, weighed, and dissected to determine disease or injury
skull sawed to remove brain and examine
specimens taken for analytical testing
blood samples, urine from bladder, stomach contents, diseased or injured tissue

51
Q

time of death

A

external exam changes
temperature (algor mortis), livro, rigor, decomp
chemical changes in body fluids
digestion (stomach contents)
survival after injuries (blood loss)
difficult, imprecise, more inaccurate as postmortem interval increases

52
Q

decomposition

A

fresh, bloated, decay, dry
depend largely on environment
geographical location, season, clothing, sun exposure, insect/animal activity

53
Q

histology

A

tissue samples taken to determine disease, trauma, pre-existing ocnditions

54
Q

toxicology

A

presence of drugs, ethanol, CO or other toxins in human tissue or fluids
help determine if these were factors in COD

4090 midterm 2 (4 decks)

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