Postmortem CT investigation of skeletal and dental maturation of the fetuses and newborn infants: a serial case study.

Physical maturation involving bones and teeth is a classic indication of fetal maturity in forensic practice, for which radiological examination is effective. The present study preliminarily investigated the efficacy of postmortem computed tomography (PM-CT) in estimating the gestational age of fetuses (n = 3) and newborn infants (n = 4), compared with plain radiography. Body length and weight estimated in reconstructed CT images approximated the measured values, providing additional data of body mass volume and fat development.

[Significance of postmortem computed tomography in forensic autopsy and its possible issues].

Postmortem imaging (PMI) including computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become a familiar procedure in forensic casework. We investigated a short term impact of postmortem CT(PM-CT) in routine forensic autopsy cases at our institute during a period of 9 months (n = 121, fetus--92 year-old, 7 h--years postmortem), comparing to autopsy findings. In identification, PM-CT was useful for matching skeletal/dental characteristics, superimposing, and detection of foreign materials.

Cardiothoracic ratio in postmortem chest radiography with regard to the cause of death.

It is difficult to examine the intact in situ status of thoracic organs, including the heart and lungs, after opening the chest at autopsy. The present study investigated the pathological diagnostic significance of the cardiothoracic ratio (CTR) with regard to heart and lung weight in postmortem plain chest radiography. The pathological diagnostic significance of the CTR in postmortem plain chest radiography using serial forensic autopsy cases of adults (>19 years of age, n=367, within 72 h postmortem) was retrospectively investigated.

Analyses of cardiac blood cells and serum proteins with regard to cause of death in forensic autopsy cases.

To investigate hematological and serum protein profiles of cadaveric heart blood with regard to the cause of death, serial forensic autopsy cases (n=308, >18 years of age, within 48 h postmortem) were examined. Red blood cells (Rbc), hemoglobin (Hb), platelets (Plt), white blood cells (Wbc), total protein (TP) and albumin (Alb) were examined in bilateral cardiac blood. Blood cell counts, collected after turning the bodies at autopsy, approximated to the clinical values.

Possible use of nasal septum and frontal sinus patterns to radiographic identification of unknown human remains.

The aim of the present study was to examine the combined use of the nasal septum and frontal sinus pattern for systemic radiographic identification of unknown human remains and the limitations. Postmortem skull radiographs were collected in 209 forensic autopsy and 163 clinical cases. In total cases, a combined use of the nasal septum deviation patterns (straight, left, right, sigmoid, reverse sigmoid and rare types) and the frontal sinus patterns (aplasia, symmetry, left or right dominant asymmetry in combination with the number of lobulations) achieved a classification of at least 204 different types (incidence up to 5%).