Citation

de Paiva LA, Parra ER, da Rosa DC, Farhat C, Delmonte C, Capelozzi VL. Am. J. Forensic Med. Pathol. 2008; 29(4): 323-329.

Affiliation

Institute of Forensic Medicine, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Department of Pathology of Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Säo Paulo, Brazil, and Laboratories for Medical Research, Hospital das Clinicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1097/PAF.0b013e31818736cd

PMID

19259018

Abstract

In immediate fire deaths, pulmonary injury may be the main source of mortality, being important to document the histologic findings for the purpose of excluding other modes of death, such as from asphyxia with no gross findings. In this context, a group of morphologic determinants have been targeted with useful makers of pulmonary injury. To facilitate the determination of whether an individual was deceased before the start of a fire and validate the importance of parenchymal alterations in pulmonary injury in fire deaths, we studied lungs in victims of fire (N = 28) and suffocation (N = 40), creating a mathematical model using cluster analysis. For this purpose, a semiquantitative analysis of the distal parenchyma was performed to evaluate the amount of bronchiolar dilatation, overinsufflation (ductal and alveolar), collapse (ductal and alveolar), passive congestion, alveolar edema, and hemorrhage (interstitial and alveolar). These 7 histologic determinants were useful to discriminate fire (bronchiolar dilatation, ductal overinsuflation, alveolar overinsuflation, alveolar hemorrhage) from suffocation lung injuries (alveolar collapse, congestion, and edema). We conclude that these determinants should be included in the routine of forensic pathology.

Language: en