Citation

De Letter EA, Vandekerkhove BN, Lambert WE, Van Varenbergh D, Piette MH. Med. Sci. Law 2008; 48(1): 37-50.

Affiliation

Ghent University, Department of Forensic Medicine, Jozef Kluyskensstraat 29, B-9000 Gent, Belgium.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, British Academy of Forensic Sciences, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

18341156

Abstract

All medico-legal cases of unexpected death during hospitalisation or accommodation in rest or nursing homes, which were investigated at the Department of Forensic Medicine during a 30-year-period, have been reviewed. In the majority of cases, the fatal outcome was bedrail or restraint related, but falls out of bed or from a patient hoist lift can also trigger a death. As expected, the manner of death was mainly accidental. In about 70% of cases, mechanical asphyxia (such as smothering and thoraco-abdominal compression) was substantiated as the mechanism of death. A substantial number of the patients had important medical antecedents, such as cognitive impairment due to cerebro-vascular accidents. In about half of the cases, human negligence was clearly related to the event whereas in only 15% of cases was there a technical mistake. We believe that some sudden and unexpected fatalities, due to physical restraint or other devices (such as a patient hoist lift), are under-reported because of the medico-legal implications. However, reporting such events could induce better precautions and prevent recurrences. Therefore, this study may be important not only for forensic pathologists, but also for a larger group of social workers.

Language: en