Using Forensic Toxicology to Enhance Medicolegal Death Investigations.

The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office performed an evidence-based review of natural deaths certified without autopsy or toxicology testing. Three hundred fifteen such cases from 2020 and 2021 were selected. This study reviewed the deaths to determine if the cause was drug-related instead due to natural disease.

Case Report of Lethal Concentrations of the Over-the-Counter Sleep Aids Diphenhydramine and Melatonin.

Over-the-counter (OTC) medications are not typically considered "drugs of abuse" by the public, yet they are implicated in a portion of overdose cases. Although the toxicity of some OTC medications (such as acetaminophen, aspirin, and diphenhydramine [DPH]) has been extensively reported in the medical literature, the lethality of other substances (including melatonin) has not been well established.We report the case of a 21-year-old woman who was found deceased within her secure residence.

Shift in Drug vs Alcohol Prevalence in Milwaukee County Motor Vehicle Decedents, 2010-2016.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine the prevalence of alcohol and nonalcohol drugs in motor vehicle crash (MVC) decedents in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin.

Methods: A retrospective review of MVC decedents in Milwaukee County from 2010 to 2016 was performed. Substances were divided into 5 categories based on chemical composition and clinical effects: alcohol, cocaine and its metabolite benzoylecgonine, opioids, cannabinoids, amphetamines and methamphetamines.