Citation

Zemni M, Ben Dhiab M, Souguir MK, Ben Abdallah E, Chebâane N. J. Med. Leg. Droit Med. 2000; 43(7-8): 583-588.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2000, Masson)

DOI

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PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Death by asphyxia represents 27% of the necropsic activity in the Forensic Department of the University Hospital of Sousse (Tunisia). We have gathered 28 cases of death caused by strangulation during a period of 8 years (1990-1997). The purpose of that retrospective study is to measure the relative part of death by strangulation within the suspected cases of death, to put in evidence the epidemiological data and to raise some forensic problems: • Violent death by strangulation represents 4% of death by asphyxia. • 70% of the victims are less than 40 years old, they are male in 2/3 of the cases. • Strangulation by tie represents 16 cases (57%), strangulation by hand 11 cases and there is one case of mixed strangulation. • Homicide represents 93% of the cases among them 20% infanticides. • Two accidents have been noticed and there's no case of suicide. • Three cases of strangulation have been disguised as suicide (2 cases) and as accident (one case). • Lesions observed during the neck autopsy were more numerous and more specific for hand strangulation with 6 cases of fracture in the larynx. • Associated lesions used in order to control and overpower the victim are diverse in violence. • The differential diagnosis with other types of asphyxia hasn't been easy because of the discrete lesions in some cases and the difficulty to determine their exact origin.

Language: en

Keywords

article; asphyxia; Asphyxia; autopsy; Autopsy; differential diagnosis; fracture; homicide; infanticide; larynx disorder; retrospective study; sex difference; strangulation; Strangulation; suicide; Tunisia; violence