The article presents the history and the course of medicolegal opinions in the Kingdom of Prussia in the 18th century. The activities of the first institutions dealing with matters in the field of public medicine in the...The article presents the history and the course of medicolegal opinions in the Kingdom of Prussia in the 18th century. The activities of the first institutions dealing with matters in the field of public medicine in the country, including medico-forensics, are described. The article presents the activities of universities and medical faculties, pioneering research by eminent professors of medicine, as well as the most important legal regulations concerning medicolegal judgments. The issue of the participation of expert doctors in court proceedings in order to resolve issues related to the assessment of health and life was discussed. Medicolegal opinions in Prussia developed very dynamically in the 18th century (especially compared to other European countries), and its tradition dates back to the times of Lex Carolina from 1532 and Lex Bambergiana from 1508.
AIM: Analysis of different methods of performing illegal abortions and causes of death in women who underwent the procedure during the interwar period. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was based on the autopsy protocols f...AIM: Analysis of different methods of performing illegal abortions and causes of death in women who underwent the procedure during the interwar period. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was based on the autopsy protocols from 1920-1939 archived at the Department of Forensic Medicine, Jagiellonian University Collegium Medicum in Krakow, Poland. The analysis comprised the deaths of women during pregnancy or in the perinatal period. The cases in which abortion was performed legally, for medical indications, were excluded. RESULTS: A total of 101 cases of illegal abortion were identified during the period studied, including 21 abortions performed by midwives, and three abortions carried out by qualified medical personnel. In 19 cases, abortion was done using a catheter or wire, while in eight cases the procedure was performed by injecting an abortion-inducing substance into the uterus or administering an injection into the foetus. Vaginal or uterine injury (27 cases), or vaginal or uterine wall perforation (10 cases), were the most common genital tract lesions indicative of abortion. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of deaths (71) were caused by peritonitis or sepsis originating from an infection involving the genital tract.
AIM: The study aimed to examine whether volatile substances (ethanol, isopropanol, and acetone) can be detected in costal cartilage and also if concentrations of detected substances reliably reflect their concentrations...AIM: The study aimed to examine whether volatile substances (ethanol, isopropanol, and acetone) can be detected in costal cartilage and also if concentrations of detected substances reliably reflect their concentrations in the peripheral blood - the standard forensic material for toxicological analyses. Such knowledge can be useful in cases when a cadaver's blood is unavailable or contaminated. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Ethanol, isopropanol, and acetone concentrations were determined in samples of unground costal cartilage (UCC), ground costal cartilage (GCC), femoral venous blood, and urine. The samples were analysed by gas chromatography (GC) with a flame ionization detector using headspace analysis. RESULTS: Volatile substances were detected in 12 out of 100 analysed samples. There was a strong positive correlation between ethanol concentration in the blood and urine (r = 0.899, p < 0.001), UCC (r = 0.809, p < 0.01), and GCC (r = 0.749, p < 0.01). A similar strong correlation was found for isopropanol concentration in the blood and urine (r = 0.979, p < 0.001), UCC (r = 0.866, p < 0.001), and GCC (r = 0.942, p < 0.001). Acetone concentration in the blood strongly correlated only with its concentration in urine (r = 0.960, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated for the first time the possibility of detecting volatile substances: ethanol, isopropanol and acetone in a human costal cartilage. Also, the study showed that higher volatiles concentrations were better determined in ground samples.
AIM: The presented cases are related to failure of due diligence found in the binding decisions of medical disciplinary boards in three centres in Poland, showing in what percentage of the cases the patient died, and ans...AIM: The presented cases are related to failure of due diligence found in the binding decisions of medical disciplinary boards in three centres in Poland, showing in what percentage of the cases the patient died, and answering the question of whether the number of deaths changed, and if yes, then why. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The material for this study was collected as a result of the analysis of disciplinary files from 410 final and binding cases before the regional boards in Warsaw, Poznan, and Lodz in 2015-2018, which covers 12.5% of Poland's total caseload. RESULTS: During the 4 years of decisions studied, one can observe only a minimal downward trend in the number of cases relating to failure of due diligence by physicians in diagnosis and treatment. Patient deaths occurred mainly in such medical fields as surgery, neurology, cardiology, and obstetrics, in 2015-2016 - a total of 28 n Warsaw, 23 in Lodz, and 8 in Poznan. CONCLUSIONS: A reduction in the number of such cases coming up before medical disciplinary boards is primarily the consequence of the growing involvement of the law enforcement/public prosecutors' offices for offences involving medical error. Currently, the legal awareness of Polish patients or, in this case, their families is focused not so much on the fact that a case has to be brought for potential medical error but on which path to take the case so as to win damages, compensation, or an annuity from the physician or from the medical establishment.
AIM: Comparison of injuries to the facial and cerebral parts of the skull causing death and grievous bodily harm, resulting solely from punches to the facial area of the skull. Assessment and confrontation of both groups...AIM: Comparison of injuries to the facial and cerebral parts of the skull causing death and grievous bodily harm, resulting solely from punches to the facial area of the skull. Assessment and confrontation of both groups in terms of the final criminal-legal classification of the perpetrator's acts. Review of reasons for court judgements with a focus on the subjective elements of the prohibited act. Attempt to verify the hypothesis assuming that death or grievous bodily harm can be caused by a single punch to the facial part of the skull. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Final judgements passed by criminal divisions of common courts of law in cases where death or grievous bodily harm was caused by injuries to the facial and cerebral parts of the skull resulting solely from punches to the facial area of the skull. Assessment of individual cases within each group to determine similarities and differences. Comparative analysis of both groups. RESULTS: The cause of death in cases involving injuries to the facial part of the skull was rapid suffocation following blood aspiration into the respiratory tract. However, the criminal-legal classification of the perpetrators' actions in these cases was varied. In one case, death resulted from injuries to the cerebral part of the skull, which are extremely rare as a result of a punch to the facial area within the skull. Grievous bodily harm was due to the loss of vision in the eye, typically due to eyeball rupture. CONCLUSIONS: Even though the circumstances of the injuries were similar, different mechanisms were responsible for causing death and grievous bodily harm in the victims. The most severe consequences (death and grievous bodily harm) were not caused by injuries of the same type in any of the cases studied. A single punch to the facial part of the skull may be enough to lead to either grievous bodily harm or death, but the criminal-legal assessment of punching to the face can vary greatly.
The paper discusses the gauge ammunition used in shooting sports, dedicated for Olympic and non-Olympic shooting disciplines. The following disciplines are addressed: trap, skeet, parcour, shooting animal silhouette targ...The paper discusses the gauge ammunition used in shooting sports, dedicated for Olympic and non-Olympic shooting disciplines. The following disciplines are addressed: trap, skeet, parcour, shooting animal silhouette targets (stationary or moving) and western competition. Ammunition used in these disciplines, especially produced in Poland, is discussed as well.
Despite the great strides made in fundamental and applied research, forensic entomology is constantly growing and considered to be an interconnected scientific discipline. Indeed, there is shortage in the available scien...Despite the great strides made in fundamental and applied research, forensic entomology is constantly growing and considered to be an interconnected scientific discipline. Indeed, there is shortage in the available scientific literature in comparison to many other legal and biological subjects as well as in the number of forensic entomologists. The main goal of this work is to clarify the importance of forensic entomology by demonstration of their applications; it can provide important information about when, where, and how a particular death occurred. It can also identify the assailant and/or the victim or might highlight in some cases, the victim's state of neglect prior to death. It also aimed to demonstrate the impact of new emerging technologies; encouraging researchers to further pursue this line of research. More multidisciplinary research would lead to better understanding and identifying novel research areas. Consequently, that could meet scientific and legal expectations.
AIM OF THE STUDY: Analysis of forensic medical opinions in the field of obstetrics prepared at the Department of Forensic Medicine, Jagiellonian University Medical College in Krakow, in 2010-2016, in order to evaluate ch...AIM OF THE STUDY: Analysis of forensic medical opinions in the field of obstetrics prepared at the Department of Forensic Medicine, Jagiellonian University Medical College in Krakow, in 2010-2016, in order to evaluate changes in the number of filed cases involving an alleged medical error over the years, and determine the most common situations where medical errors are suspected by patients, and the most prevalent types of medical errors in obstetrics. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The opinions were divided into two groups. In the first group, the medical management was appropriate, while in the second group medical errors were identified. The medical errors were categorised as diagnostic/therapeutic, technical, and organisational. The effects of medical errors were classified as death, impairment to health, exposure to death, and exposure to impairment to health, by considering them separately for post-natal women, and for foetuses and neonates (during the first days of life). RESULTS: A total of 73 forensic medical opinions were analysed. In 25 cases, a medical error was identified. The most common situations in which a medical error was committed, and in which the suspicion of medical error proved to be unfounded, were listed. Overall, there were 17 diagnostic/therapeutic errors, 7 organisational errors, and 4 technical errors. In cases where a medical error was identified, there were 15 deaths, and in cases without a medical error - 31 deaths. CONCLUSIONS: It was found that 66% of the analysed forensic medical opinions involved no medical errors. In most of these cases, a therapeutic failure occurred, including perinatal haemorrhage, tight wrapping of the umbilical cord around the foetal neck (nuchal cord), premature birth, and septic complications. A few cases involved uncooperative patients. The most prevalent medical error was failure to perform or delaying a caesarean section when it was needed (because of emergency or urgent indications). The second most common medical error was related to incorrect CTG interpretation.
Rębała K, Branicki W, Pawłowski R
… +10 more, Spólnicka M, Kupiec T, Parys-Proszek A, Woźniak M, Grzybowski T, Boroń M, Wróbel M, Ciesielka M, Ossowski A, Jacewicz R
Y chromosome typing has been performed in forensic genetic practice for more than 20 years. The latest recommendations of the DNA Commission of the International Society of Forensic Genetics (ISFG) concerning the applica...Y chromosome typing has been performed in forensic genetic practice for more than 20 years. The latest recommendations of the DNA Commission of the International Society of Forensic Genetics (ISFG) concerning the application of Y-chromosomal markers in forensic genetics were published in 2006. The aim of this report is to recapitulate, systematise and supplement existing recommendations on the forensic analysis of polymorphism of the Y chromosome with standards already implemented in practice, new capabilities linked to the development of research techniques as well as current solutions used in statistical analysis. The recommendations have been adapted specifically to aspects related to the preparation of expert opinions in the field of forensic genetics in Poland. The Polish Speaking Working Group of the ISFG believes that the presented guidelines should become a standard implemented by all Polish laboratories performing Y chromosome typing for forensic purposes.
Zakład Medycyny Sądowej w Lublinie od 1967 r. mieści się przy ul. Jaczewskiego 8b, z krótką przerwą na czas remontu ze środków unijnych w latach 2013-2015, kiedy to został przeniesiony do budynku Bursaki Grey Office przy...Zakład Medycyny Sądowej w Lublinie od 1967 r. mieści się przy ul. Jaczewskiego 8b, z krótką przerwą na czas remontu ze środków unijnych w latach 2013-2015, kiedy to został przeniesiony do budynku Bursaki Grey Office przy ul. Związkowej. W historii naszego Zakładu szczególnie zapisali się Roman Mądro i Piotr Kozioł.
Abrasion injuries such as graze abrasions occur due to dragging of the body over a rough surface along the line of force. Such dragging of a body usually occurs when a person is trapped/pinned underneath a moving object...Abrasion injuries such as graze abrasions occur due to dragging of the body over a rough surface along the line of force. Such dragging of a body usually occurs when a person is trapped/pinned underneath a moving object like an automobile. Most of such injuries are superficial in nature or are limited to the soft tissues only. However, when the body is dragged for a considerable distance with considerable force then there might be bony involvement causing abrasion injuries to bone, which may be termed as "bone abrasion". The authors present 2 cases having a specific pattern of abrasion injuries due to dragging of the broad body surface area by a moving vehicle for a considerable distance with speed and force in a road traffic accident. With evolving science there is a need to acknowledge injuries which may have specific pattern. Abrasion of bone due to a dragging force comprises such an interesting pattern of injuries, which potentially have forensic significance.
INTRODUCTION: An association of MAOA-uVNTR polymorphism with aggression and violence has been demonstrated in many studies; however, this association is inconclusive due to the allelic variation in different populations....INTRODUCTION: An association of MAOA-uVNTR polymorphism with aggression and violence has been demonstrated in many studies; however, this association is inconclusive due to the allelic variation in different populations. Allelic variants and the frequency of this polymorphism among recidivist violent offenders could provide more information about this complex behaviour. Hence, the association between violence and the polymorphism of variable numbers of tandem repeats located upstream of the MAOA gene needs to be ruled out. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Identified recidivist violent offenders by various laws of 'Offences against Human Body and Property' of the Indian Penal Code and natives of the southern state of India, Kerala, were the cases. Individuals without a history of any offences, from the same locality, were taken as controls. DNA extracted from the buccal epithelial cells from the subjects was genotyped using PCR methods for identifying MAOA-uVNTR polymorphism. RESULTS: In the subjects (n = 67), polymorphism in the promoter region of the MAOA gene, which comprises of 30bp repeats, 3.5 and 4.5 repeat alleles were observed statistically significantly (p = 0.015). Both 3.5 and 4.5 repeat alleles were present in the participants belonging to the control group. All the participants belonging to experiment group had 3.5 repeats only. CONCLUSIONS: This candidate gene-environment interaction (cGxE) may be one of the reasons for the development of psychopathology in violent offenders. This is the first study among offenders in this regard in India, and data generated will be a significant contribution to the aetiology of various psychiatric disorders and population-specific genome database.
INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to compare the dual-energy behaviour of the main illicit substances as well as their cutting agents in order to be able to differentiate them. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Cocaine,...INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to compare the dual-energy behaviour of the main illicit substances as well as their cutting agents in order to be able to differentiate them. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Cocaine, heroin, MDMA, and cannabis as well as 3 adulterants, 2 diluents, and water were scanned at 90 kV and then at 140 kV on a single X-ray tube computed tomography (CT) scanner. The data acquired enabled a mapping of the attenuation values to 90 and 140 kVp as well as a resulting dual-energy index (DEI) mapping. RESULTS: Drugs, cocaine, MDMA (pill), and cannabis had a positive DEI (0.014-0.008), while heroin and MDMA (powder) had a negative DEI (-0.016 and -0.013). The DEI of water was -0.01 and that of taurine was -0.018. Adulterants had negative DEI, while diluents had a positive DEI. All DEI were significantly different (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Cocaine and heroin can be clearly differentiated using DEI.
INTRODUCTION: In Poland, the problem of suicide attempts has not been the subject of a comprehensive analysis. We examined the magnitude of the phenomenon and suicide trends over the past 3 decades, focusing on the numbe...INTRODUCTION: In Poland, the problem of suicide attempts has not been the subject of a comprehensive analysis. We examined the magnitude of the phenomenon and suicide trends over the past 3 decades, focusing on the number of suicide deaths and attempts, the method and place of suicide, gender, age, day of the week, and state of mind. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We used official nationwide data collected by the Central Statistical Office (CSO) and the National Police Headquarters (NPH) for the years 1990-2018. The final statistical data collected by the CSO was verified on the basis of medically certified deaths. RESULTS: Despite the correlation between the information from the CSO and NPH on the classification of suicides, in the opinion of authors', the published data is underestimated or incorrectly categorized. There were 187,502 suicide attempts in Poland between 1990 and 2018, 75.8% of which resulted in death. In 2018, the suicide rate in Poland was 13.6 per 100,000 people and was higher than in 1990 (9.7). The highest risk for suicides is observed for men aged 45-54 years, at the turn of winter and spring, on Mondays, and in rural areas. The critical period is Mondays at the turn of winter and spring. Hanging is the most commonly used suicide method. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the collected statistical data, it should be stated that suicide attempts have for many years been a significant social problem in Poland, for which no systemic solutions have been introduced.
INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to find causal relationships between the use of new psychoactive substances (NPS), the so-called "legal highs", and the cause of death, taking into account information indicating t...INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to find causal relationships between the use of new psychoactive substances (NPS), the so-called "legal highs", and the cause of death, taking into account information indicating the victim's mental disorders before death. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The research material includes the results of toxicological analyses of blood samples collected during autopsies of 40 deceased persons whose cause of death was associated with the ingestion of new psychoactive substances (NPS). The blood samples were subjected to solid phase extraction (SPE), and then analyzed by liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS-MS) for quantification. Information on individual cases was taken from case files provided by the prosecutor's office for research purposes. RESULTS: As a result of the analyses, 24 types of NPS were detected, comprising synthetic cathinones - 15 cases, synthetic cannabinoids - 10 cases, synthetic opioids - 13 cases, other - 2 cases. In the study group there were 5 women (12.5%) and 35 men (87.5%). Suicide was demonstrated in 10 cases (25%), while the remaining 30 cases (75%) were accidental deaths, including those in which the actual motivation of drug use could not be determined. Drugs used to treat mental disorders were detected in 6 cases, while analgesics were demonstrated in 5 cases. CONCLUSIONS: In the majority of cases, including suicides and accidental deaths where the manner of death was unknown, NPS use and consequent death from various causes are associated with psychiatric disorders.
In the novel "The Name of the Rose" by Umberto Eco, a fanatical monk laced the pages of a book with a poison, which led to the death of several monks in a medieval monastery. Based on modern toxicological knowledge, an a...In the novel "The Name of the Rose" by Umberto Eco, a fanatical monk laced the pages of a book with a poison, which led to the death of several monks in a medieval monastery. Based on modern toxicological knowledge, an attempt can be made to determine whether there exists a substance meeting the criteria of the poison described in the novel. To this end, toxicological literature on the lethal doses of plant-derived poisons and their duration of action was reviewed. Cowbane (Cicuta virosa), a plant used for preparing poisonous potions, contains cicutoxin which kills at a dose of 500 mg. Similar toxicity is displayed by water dropwort (Oenanthe crocata) and Cerbera odollam growing in India and Madagascar. Hemlock (Conium maculatum) contains coniine which is able to kill a victim after exposure to a dose as low as 100 to 200 mg. Morphine found in opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) and colchicine contained in autumn crocus (Colchicum autumnale) produce lethal effects at similar doses. So do more exotic plants such as Calabar bean (Physostigma venenosum) which contains physostygmine. Two other exotic plants that need to be mentioned in this context are far more poisonous. They include Saint Ignatius's bean (Strychnos ignatii) and strychnine tree (Strychnos nux-vomica). Both contain strychnine, the lethal dose of which is 30 mg. Death cap (Amanita phalloides) might also be considered in this context, but despite being lethal at a dose of 20 mg, amanitin contained in this fungus takes a few days to kill a victim, so the effect is considerably slower than that experienced by the monks in Eco's novel. A dose of 10 mg is sufficient to kill a human with any of four other plant-derived poisons: antiarin, atropine, digoxin and strophantin. Aconitum (Aconitum napellus), also known as monkshood, contains aconitine and is an even more deadly plant, with the lethal dose for humans being only 2 mg. Ricin and abrin are ranked even higher in the list of plant-derived toxins, as they are able to kill in doses lower than 1 mg. However, they could not have been used by the murderer in "The Name of the Rose", as they cause death only several days after ingestion. To conclude, the plant that best matches the criteria mentioned in the novel is Aconitum.