Citation

Tambuzzi S, Gentile G, Galante N, Del Gobbo A, Andreola S, Zoja R. Leg. Med. (Elsevier) 2022; 55: e102014.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Japanese Society of Legal Medicine, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.legalmed.2022.102014

PMID

35030373

Abstract

Povidone-iodine (PVP-I) in the formulation of Betadine® is widely used in several medical fields, whereas its suicidal ingestion is an unusual occurrence. Therefore, the biological signs of this fatal poisoning remain unclear and elusive, similarly to the histological lesions induced by PVP-I. In fact, there are no forensic articles concerning the histological signs of PVP-I acute poisoning. Specifically, this short communication reports the unique case of a man who ingested 125 ml of Betadine® 10% to commit suicide, for which he died three days later. The autopsy examination showed either local or systemic signs of caustic ingestion; moreover, the histological analysis showed both intra- and extra-cytoplasmic amorphous and brownish microaggregates in almost all the organs. Histological and histochemical techniques resulted to be negative for the detection of physiological and known pigments (e.g., formalin, lipofuscin, hemosiderin). Likewise, such pigments were not associated neither with the man's diseases nor with his medications. Therefore, the authors supposed that they were povidone-iodine microaggregates, which have been deposited in the organs through the blood circulation. In conclusion, the complete postmortem histological examination could allow the identification and the characterization of PVP-I microaggregates as evidence of systemic toxicity from Betadine®, when dealing with a forensic case of ingestion of povidone-iodine.

Language: en

Keywords

Humans; Male; Suicide; Autopsy; Poisoning; Forensic Medicine; Eating; Forensic pathology; Povidone iodine; Povidone-Iodine