Intro to clinical sciences Flashcards
What are the 2 types of autopsy?
- “hospital” autopsies
2. Medico-legal autopsies
What are “hospital” autopsies?
Require medical certificate of cause of death
acquire for <10% of all UK autopsies
Requires a medial certificate of cause of death
used for audit, teaching, research, governance
What are medico-legal autopsies?
account for >90% of all UK autopsies
2 types of medico-legal autopsies?
- Coronial autopsies - death is not due to unlawful action
2. Forensic autopsies - death is thought unlawful
what 4 questions does a coronial autopsy answer?
- Who was deceased?
- When did they die?
- Where did they die?
- How did their death come about?
3 reasons deaths are referred to a coroner?
- Presumed natural
- Presumed iatrogenic
- Presumed unnatural
Presumed natural deaths - why referred to a coroner?
Patient was not seen by doctor in last illness (within last 14 days)
Cause of death is unknown
Most common reason for referral
Presumed iatrogenic - why referred to a coroner?
Anaesthetic deaths
Illegal abortions
Peri/postoperative deaths
Complications of therapy (even if recognised complications)
Presumed unnatural - why referred to a coroner?
Accident Unlawful killing Neglect Suicide War/industrial pension Custody death Industrial deaths
Who can refer for an autopsy?
Doctors
Registrar of BDM
Others; relatives, police, anatomical pathology technicians, other properly interested parties
Doctors and referring an autopsy
GMC provides guidance
Do NOT have a statutory duty to do so
Common law duty
Registrar of BDM and referring an autopsy
Have a STATUTORY DUTY to refer
Who can perform autopsies?
Doctors
Histopathologists
Forensic pathologists
What autopsies can histopathologists perform?
Hospital autopsies
Coronial autopsies; natural deaths, drowning, suicide, road traffic deaths, accidents, fire deaths, industrial deaths, peri/postoperative deaths
What autopsies can forensic pathologists perform?
Coronial autopsies; homicide, death in custody, neglect, any other coronial deaths that may have been caused by a third party
what autopsies can doctors perform?
All autopsies
5 stages of an autopsy
- History/ scene
- External examination
- Evisceration
- Internal examination
- Reconstruction
What other investigations/ processes does an autopsy entail?
Toxicology Microbiology Digital photography Histology Genetics Radiology
Purpose and process of an external examination?
To ensure having the right body
Identification; formal identifier, gender, age, body habitus, jewellery, body modification, clothing
Disease and treatment
Injuries
Process of the evisceration stage?
- Y-shaped evisceration (behind ears to clavicle)
- Open all body cavities
- Examine all organs in situ
- Remove thoracic and abdominal organs
- Remove brain
Process of internal examination stage (in specific order)?
All body systems are examined in a specific order Heart and great vessels Lungs, trachea, bronchi Liver, gallbladder, pancreas (avoiding lower GI tract to avoid infection) Spleen, thymus, lymph nodes Genitourinary tract Endocrine organs Central nervous system
What is inflammation?
The local physiological response to tissue injury, it is NOT a disease, but is a MANIFESTATION of disease.
A series of reactions that brings cells and molecules of the immune system to sites of infection or damage.
Beneficial effects of inflammation?
- Destruction of invading microorganisms
- Walling off of an abscess cavity
- Prevents spread of infection
How can inflammation produce disease?
- An abscess can act as a space-occupying lesion and compress other vital surrounding structures
- Fibrosis from chronic inflammation may distort the tissues and permanently alter function
What are the 2 types of inflammation and how are they characterised?
- Characterised by differences in cell types taking part in the inflammatory response.
- Acute inflammation; neutrophils, granulocytes, resident immune cells already present in involved tissue
- Chronic inflammation; lymphocytes (around vessel), macrophages (multinucleate giant cell), plasma cells, leukocytes, T lymphocytes, fibroblasts,
What is acute inflammation?
The initial and often transient series of tissue reactions to injury.
Lasts few hours - few days.
Complete elimination of a pathogen followed by resolution of damage, disappearance of leukocytes and full regeneration of tissue.
What is chronic inflammation?
The subsequent and often prolonged tissue reactions following the initial response.
Persistent, un-resolved inflammation.
Example of acute inflammation
Appendicitis
Steps of ACUTE Inflammation
- Initial reaction of tissue to injury
- Vascular component; dilation of vessels
- Exudative component; vascular leakage of protein-rich fluid
- Neutrophil polymorph is the characteristic cell recruited
- Travels to tissue
- Outcome; resolution, suppuration (i.e. abscess), organisation, progression to chronic inflammation
Causes of ACUTE inflammation
- Microbial infections; viruses, pyogenic bacteria
- Hypersensitivity; parasites
- Physical agents; trauma, ionising agents
- Chemicals; alkalis, corrosives, acids
- Bacterial toxins
- Tissue necrosis; ischaemic infarction
How do microbial infection (viruses and bacteria) lead to acute inflammation?
- Viruses lead to death of individual cells by multicellular multiplication
- Bacteria release; exotoxins that synthesise chemicals to initiate inflammation OR endotoxins that are associated with their cell walls
- Organisms can cause immunologically mediated inflammation through hypersensitivity reactions
Where hypersensitivity is important in Parasitic infections & tuberculous inflammation
How do hypersensitivity reactions lead to acute inflammation?
- Hypersensitivity reaction occurs when an altered state of immunological responsiveness causes an inappropriate or excessive immune reaction that damages the tissues
- Hypersensitivity reactions all have a cellular/ chemical mediators similar to those involved in inflammation
How do physical agents lead to acute inflammation?
- Tissue damage caused by physical trauma, ultraviolet/ ionising radiation, burns, excessive cooling can lead to inflammation
How do irritant and corrosive chemicals lead to acute inflammation?
- Corrosive chemicals lead to gross tissue damage provoking inflammation
- Infecting agents release specific chemical irritants that lead to directly to inflammation
How does tissue necrosis lead to acute inflammation?
- Death of tissue through necrosis is a potent inflammatory stimulus
- Edge of recent infarcts shows acute inflammatory response, in response to peptides released from the red tissue
What is acute inflammation characterised by?
Redness, Heat, Immobility (loss of function), Swelling, Pain
Why is redness associated with acute inflammation?
Due to inflammation of small blood vessels within the damaged area.
Why is heat associate with acute inflammation?
Due to increased blood flow through the region, so vascular dilation and delivery of warm blood to the area
Systemic fever as a result of some of the chemical mediators also contributes to the local temperature.
Why is swelling associated with acute inflammation?
There is an accumulation of fluid in the extravascular space as part of the fluid exudate -> Oedema
Swelling results from oedema
Physical mass of inflammatory cells migrating to the area and formation of new connective tissue also contributes to the swelling.
Why is pain associated with acute inflammation?
It partly results form the stretching and distortion of tissues due to oedema and from pus under pressure in an abscess cavity.
Other chemical mediators of acute inflammation (bradykinin, prostaglandins, serotonin) also induce pain.
Why is immobility associated with acute inflammation?
Movement of an inflamed area is consciously and reflexly inhibited by pain.
Severe swelling may physically immobilise tissues.
Describe the early stages of acute inflammation…
- Oedema fluid, fibrin and neutrophil polymorphs accumulate in the extracellular spaces of damaged tissue
- Neutrophil polymorphs are the first cells on the scene (essential for histological diagnosis of acute inflammation)
- They capture and destroy invading microorganism via phagocytosis and intercellular degradation, granules and formation of neutrophil extracellular traps that result in pus
- They also recruit & activate other cells to the scene
What are the 3 processes that the acute inflammatory response involves?
- Changes in vessel calibre and flow
- Increased vascular permeability, formation of the fluid exudate
- Formation of cellular exudate - emigration of neutrophil polymorphs into extravascular space
What causes increased vascular permeability?
- Immediate transient chemical mediators; histamine, bradykinin, platelet activating factor
- Immediate sustained severe direct vascular injury; trauma
- Delayed prolonged endothelial cell injury; x-rays , bacterial toxins
Formation of the cellular exudate…
- Accumulation of neutrophil polymorphs within extracellular space (diagnostic histological feature of acute inflammation)
- Leukocytes reach the tissue
How do neutrophil polymorphs emigrate into damaged tissues?
- Margination of neutrophils
- Pavementing of neutrophils
- Pass between endothelial cells
- Pass through basal lamina and pirate into adventitia
Causes of increased vascular permeability, time course & mechanism
- Immediate transient; chemical mediators, histamine, platelet activating factor, bradykinin, nitric oxide
- Immediate sustained; severe direct vascular injury i.e. trauma
- Delayed prolonged; Endothelial cell injury i.e. X-rays, bacterial toxins
Role of chemical mediators involved in acute inflammation
Acute inflammation speeds due to chemical substances being released from injured tissues spreading outwards into uninjured areas.
The original inflammatory stimulus releases histamine and thrombin cause up-regulation of adhesion molecules on the surface of endothelial cells.
Overall effect of the molecules = very firm neutrophil adhesion to the endothelial surface.
What are the chemical mediators of acute inflammation called?
Endogenous chemical mediators
What do endogenous chemical mediators cause?
- Vasodilation
- Emigration of neutrophils
- Chemotaxis
- Increased vascular permeability
- Itching and pain
what chemical mediators are released from cells?
- Histamine
- lysosomal compounds
- eicosanoids
- 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin)
- chemokine (chemotactic cytokines)
what 4 enzymatic cascade systems do plasma factors contain?
all are interrelated and produce various inflammatory mediators
- complement
- the kinins
- the coagulation factors
- the fibrinolytic system
what does coagulation factor XII (hageman factor) activate?
- Kinin system
- Fibrinolytic system
- Coagulation system
Describe the kinin system pathway…
Kinin system –> Kinins –> Complement systems –> Activated complement
Describe the fibrinolytic system pathway…
Fibrinolytic system –> Plasmin –> Complement systems –> Activated complement
(Plasmin also degrades fibrin)
Describe the coagulation system pathway…
Coagulation –> fibrin –> fibrin split products
What endogenous chemical mediators cause vascular dilation?
- Histamine
- Prostoglandins
- PGE2/ I2
- Nitric Oxide
- VIP
- PAF
What endogenous chemical mediators cause increased vascular permeability?
- transient phase; histamine
- prolonged phase; bradykinin, nitric oxide,C5a, leucotriene B4, PAF