Trauma Flashcards
Contusions
Skin discoloration caused by ruptured blood vessels (bruising)
Abrasions
Scrapes that occur from skin being scraped away through friction
-Can be superficial or deeo
Lacerations
Tears of the skin, associated with blunt weapons
Pattern injury
Injury where size/shape is consistent with the object that created it
Petechiae
Pinpoint marks in the eyes of a hanged person as a result of burst capillaries
What should be done if a body is found with a ligature around the neck
Cut the ligature above the knot and leave the ligature on the neck
Manual vs ligature strangulation
Manual: Hands or arms being used to compress the throat
Ligature: Strangulation via object (like cords or rope)
Types of sharp force trauma
Incised-Wound is longer than it is deep
Chopping-Created by large weapons
Stab-Wound is deeper than it is long
Defense-Self explanatory
Superficial-Surface wound
Tight contact wound
Firearm was pressed firmly against skin at time of discharge
Loose contact wound
Distance between weapon and skin at point of discharge
Intermediate Range Wounds
Powder tattooing is seen; flakes of unburned powder strike the skin with enough force to embed themselves
Exit wounds are typically….
Larger and more irregular than the entrance wound
Exit wounds may appear
In a crescent, circular, star, or slit shape
If an exit wound is slit like, the bullet will be….
Near the body
If the deceased has soot in the lower airway, they were
Alive at the time the fire started
Death via electrocution may occur from
Direct or alternating currents
Blood spatters are much larger on ____ surfaces than they are on ____ surfaces.
Rough-textured; smooth
The ___ end of an elongated bloodstain usually points in ________.
Narrow; the direction of travel
If the angle of impact is 90°, the resulting bloodstain
Will generally be circular in shape
Blood drops that strike a target at an angle less than 90° will create
Elliptical bloodstains with varied shapes
Back spatter
Backward ejections of material (blood)
Satellite spatter
Single drops of blood producing small spatters around the parent stain because of striking a rough target surface
Drip patterns
Occur when blood drops fall into previously deposited wet bloodstains
Castoff patterns
Occur when there are subsequent blows to a same general area where a wound has occurred
Expirated bloodstain
Accumulation of blood being expelled from the nose or mouth
Skeletonized stain
What occurs when the center of a dried bloodstain flakes away and leaves a visible outer rim
Hemorrhage
Release of blood from a broken blood vessel
Hematoma
Trapped pool of blood
Fractures
Bending or breaking of bone
Types of mechanical asphyxia
Strangulation
Hanging
Smothering
Compression laceration
Skin is squeezed against bones until it bursts
Incisions often have
Tapered edges
Puncture wounds
Commonly the result of getting shot
Difference between entry and exit wounds
Entry wounds are neat and circular, exit wounds are irregular in shape
Less than 6” shooting distance usually results in
Seared or burned wounds
Powder deeply embedded in skin
6-12” inches of distance results in
Gas fouling
Powder stippling
12-36 inches results in
Only stippling
36+ inches results in
an entry wound only
Gas fouling
Black circle around entry wound
Features of a (superficial) first degree burn
Reddened skin
Features of (partial thickness) second degree burns
Blisters & deep dermal damage
Features of (full thickness) third degree burns
Dermis (living layer of skin) is cooked and destroyed; skin is charred and will scar
Fire induced burns vs scalds
Fire results in blackening, scalding cooks the skin off
Thermal asphyxia
Burns the trachea and alveoli
Indicator of inhalation of CO
bright pink tissues
Fibrillation
The inability of the heart to effectively pump blood
Cardiac tetany
Heart has stopped due to electricity
What usually occurs between 65 and 100 mA?
Cardiac fibrillation
What occurs after 1000 mA?
Cardiac tetany
Types of chemical trauma
Environmental
Accidental
Recreational
Prescription
OTC
Common chemical trauma
Ethanol (Alcohol)
Drug overdose
Carbon monoxide
Pesticides
Insect stings
Greenstick fracture
Incomplete break on convex surface
Fissured fracture
Incomplete longitudinal break
Comminuted fracture
Complete break, fragments bone
Transverse fracture
Complete break at right angle to axis of bone
Oblique fraction
Occur at any non-right angle to axis of bone
Lead snowstorm
White fragments of lead around missing tissue
Whats a dead giveaway that a wound is an incision?
Clean edges where the skin is cut
Ripped skin is the result of a…
Laceration
The presence of double black eyelids is a strong indicator of….
Basilar skull fracture
