[Fatalities associated with methadone administration in the Geneva canton (1987-1993)].

In Geneva 41 deaths associated with methadone have been observed between 1987 and 1993. In 11 cases death was caused by heroin overdose in combination with methadone. In 6 other cases (natural death, hanging, murder, road accident, drowning and burning) methadone, although in feeble doses, could have played a role in the circumstances leading to death.

[Presence of psychotropic drugs in the blood of drivers responsible for car accidents, and who consumed alcohol at the same time].

The presence of psychotropic drugs was determined in 383 blood samples of drivers being responsible for car accidents, having taken alcohol as well. Benzodiazepines were detected in 52 cases and cannabinoids in 31 cases. The characterisation of these positive cases showed a majority of classic benzodiazepines (diazepam, nordiazepam, and bromazepam).

[Sudden death during performance of sport: forensic medicine elucidation].

Our study deals with cases of sudden death (non-traumatic death) while playing sport which were examined at the Institute of Forensic Medicine at the University of Geneva, and covers the last ten years: 1980-1989. We discovered 19 cases, all men between the ages of 17 to 67. In the case of the younger sportsmen (under the age of 45-50) or when the causes of mortality were unclear, the police requested an autopsy, which totalled 8 cases.

Assessing death by poisoning: does the medical history help?

During one year we sought medical historical data for all medico-legal autopsies with toxicological analysis (n = 51); the same procedure was applied to a control group of autopsies without toxicological analysis. Historical data was available in 70 cases (69%), the proportion being significantly higher among cases where the cause of death was poisoning (84%) than in the non-poisoning cases (48%). In the poisoning cases information was more often available from the emergency service, the psychiatric service and the prison medical service.

Morphine in postmortem blood: its importance for the diagnosis of deaths associated with opiate addiction.

This article describes an analytical method for the determination of morphine, the active metabolite of heroin, in post-mortem blood by HPLC with electrochemical detection. An extraction technique allowing the determination of free and total morphine (free morphine + morphine glucuronide) was used. Blood morphine levels in postmortem cases are reported and the ratio of free to total morphine was measured in 52 cases obtained at autopsy.