Post Mortem Changes Flashcards
Algor mortis
Cooling off 1•C/h Dep on fat, hair, sorrunding temperature, premortem incr temp!
Pallor mortis
Pale color - blood settles to lower parts of animals, lower eye is darker eg.! Hair and pigmentation makes it hard to see Can also just be anemia!
exsiccatio postmortalis
• Desiccation: areas dry out w/o blood circulation (cornea, mucous membranes, skin - nose)
Rigor mortis
– 2-4 hours the beginning
– 5-8 hours becomes general
– 24-48 hours starts to disappear – 48-60 passes off
- start on head, then goes caudually to trunk. Goes away on head first too, then trunk.
- heart mm: start after 30min, last for 1day
- sm: start after 10/15min, lasts 1-4h (instestines, spleen, arteries) wrinkles in stomach(?)
Cruor postmortalis
- Blood clot: dark, smooth, shiny, fleshy, not stuck to intima - easy to remove!
- in large vessels and heart only
hypostasis postmortalis(blood sedimentation); Livores mortis (dødsflekker)
- Discoloration of skin: purple spots caused by sedimentation, in organs: discoloration caused by sedimentation.
- Gravity cause body fluids to accumulate at bottom, changing position of carcass makes patterns
- within 1h
Imbibition
• discoloration caused by blood, bile (hg, bile pigment imbibition)
Autolysis
- yellowish, no structure, fibers are not visible, drier, can tear fiber - like cooked meat!
- self digestion using own enzymes
Putrefaction - rottening
• by bacteria, greenish color(dark)
Emphysema (hepatic postmortal emphysema)
Gastric tympany - post mortal gas accumulation
Sulph-hemoglobin; pseudomelaninosis
• Reaction of (degr rbc)Hb (hemoglobin) + H2S (hydrogen-sulphid from bacteria) greyish-green,
• Typically in intestines where bacteria are, but can happen anywhere with blood! Bacteria in blood.
Adipocere
- pm changes and mummification together (grave wax)
- wet, clay soil
