Pathology

Question 1

What is the difference between a pathologist and a forensic pathologist?

Answer 1

• A pathologist is a medical doctor who studies and diagnoses disease in humans
• A forensic pathologist studies death and trauma that leads to the death of an individual

Question 2

What is an autopsy?

Answer 2

Involves the standardised dissection of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death

Question 3

What is the cause and manner of death?

Answer 3

Cause: the explanation for the cessation of life
Manner: the way in which the cessation of life came to be; only four manners of death are acknowledged (homicide, suicide, accidental and natural)

Question 4

What is mechanical trauma?

Answer 4

• Occurs when the force applied to a tissue such as skin or bone exceeds the mechanical or tensile strength of that tissue
• Includes sharpe and blunt force trauma

Question 5

What is sharp force trauma?

Answer 5

• Refers to injuries caused by Sharpe implements such as knives, axes or ice picks
• Produce incised wounds that have more depth
• Most commonly causes death by exsanguination

Question 6

What is exsanguination?

Answer 6

A fatal loss of blood usually when a major artery of the heart is damaged

Question 7

What is blunt forcemeat

Answer 7

• Caused by dull or non-sharpened objects like baseball bats, bricks or lamps
• Produce lacerations or tears in the tissue
• Most commonly causes death when the brain has been severely damaged

Question 8

What is stipling?

Answer 8

The burning of the skin due to contact with unburned gunpowder penetrating the skin

Question 9

What is a contusion?

Answer 9

• An accumulation of blood in the tissues outside the normal blood vessels and is most often the result of blunt impact
• A hematoma is an extreme contusion

Question 10

What is asphyxia?

Answer 10

• The body is deprived of oxygen -> brain is the most susceptible organ
• Occurs as a result of three main mechanisms; suffocation, strangulation and chemical asphyxiation

Question 11

What is chemical trauma?

Answer 11

• Refers to damage and death which results from the interaction of chemicals with the human body

Question 12

What is thermal trauma?

Answer 12

• Extreme heat or cold may produce death

- Hypothermia is too much exposure to cold an hyperthermia is excessive heat

Question 13

What is rigor mortis?

Answer 13

The stiffening of the body after death due

Question 14

What is liver mortis?

Answer 14

• The settling of blood due to gravity after the heart no longer circulates it -> results in a purplelish discolouration in the skin
• The blood settles in accordance with gravity - if pattern of lividity does not match the position of the body as it was found, it indicates the body has been moved after death
• Begins about an hour after death and peaks around 3-4 hours

Question 15

What is petechiae?

Answer 15

Pinpoint haemorrhages found around the eyes, lining the mouth and throat -> often seen in hanging or strangulation victims

Question 16

What is algor mortis

Answer 16

The cooling of the body after death

Question 17

What is autolysis?

Answer 17

The disintegration of the body by enzymes released by dying cells

Question 18

What are the four main stages of decomposition?

Answer 18

1. Fresh
2. Bloated (as gaseous by-products of bacterial action build up in body)
3. Decay (wet-mushy liquid)
4. Dry

Question 19

What is a exhumation?

Answer 19

The retrieval of a previously buried body for post mortem examination

Question 20

What is embalming?

Answer 20

A process of chemically treating the dead human body to reduce the presence and growth of microorganisms and to restore an acceptable physical appearance