[Pulmonary and systemic fat embolism as a cause of death in forensic autopsy practice].

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible correlations between the grade of fat embolism and age, gender, severity of trauma and post-traumatic survival time.

Methods: Thirty-one cases with pulmonary and/or systemic fat embolism, auotopsied at the Morgue Department of Council of Forensic Medicine were evaluated retrospectively.

Results: Twenty-eight cases (90%) died due to trauma and its complications. Nineteen cases (61%) were injured in motor vehicle-related accidents. Post-traumatic survival time varied between 0-384 hours (61.6+/-86.2 hours). Abbreviated injury scale (AIS) was 8.1+/-3.9 and injury severity score (ISS) was 26.5+/-19.7 SD. Twenty-four (77%) cases were determined as isolated pulmonary fat embolism and 7 (23%) cases as systemic fat embolism on histopathological examination. Possible correlations between the grade of fat embolism and age, gender, severity of trauma and post-traumatic survival time were evaluated statistically with using Chi-square and Spearman's correlation tests.

Conclusion: There were no correlations between the grade of fat embolism and age, gender, the severity of trauma. Post-traumatic survival time and the severity of trauma had a very weak negative correlation without any statistical significance.