Injuries caused by blunt and SHARP objects
WOUND: (legal definition):’ breach of the full thickness of the skin (or lining of lip). This excludes abrasions, bruises, internal injuries and fractures!
WOUND: (medical definition)’ disruption of the continuity of the tissues produced by external mechanical force’
INJURY: from the latin injuria (in- not, jus- the law). The term is often used synonymously with wound but can have a wider use, including damage to tissues by heat, cold, chemicals, electricity, radiation, in addition to mechanical force
LESION: from the latin laesio (a hurt). Originally meant injury, now more widely applied to include ” any area of injury, disease or local degeneration in a tissue causing a change in its function or structure”
TRAUMA – bodily harm with or without structural alterations resulting from interaction with physicochemical agents, imparting energy to tissues.
May cause morphologically apparent damage (wound) or produce physiological imbalance (eg reflex cardiac arrest by neural stimulation) and secondary effects (eg thrombosis, infection, obstruction of tubular organs)
TYPES OF TRAUMA
Energy may applied to tissues in various forms :
1) Mechanical Force
Blunt force trauma (BFT)
-a moving object (KE) striking the body as in a blow
-the moving body (KE) striking a fixed object or surface as in a fall
BFT causes bruises, abrasions and lacerations
Sharp force: knife tip or edge, broken glass, jagged metal
– applied force is concentrated over a small area, requires little force to cut tissues
Firearm; high velocity, small mass projectile
2) Thermal energy: heat or cold
3) Electrical energy: flow of current may cause localised burn if resistance is high
4) Atmospheric Pressure: high or low, in air or water
5) Radiation: particle or radiation
6) Chemical reaction with tissue releasing energy
Mechanical Force may cause Impact, Angulation, Compression, Traction, Torsion, Shearing, Acceleration/deceleration (RTA)
Different tissues have varying properties of
Elasticity (tendency of stressed material to regain its unstressed condition
Plasticity (tendency to remain in stressed condition)
Viscosity (resistance to change in shape when stressed)
Different tissues therefore have different elastic limits (tolerance limits or break points) and are vulnerable to different stresses. Skin has greater elastic limit than underlying fat and blood vessels making subcutaneous bruising more common than skin laceration e.g. torsion often causes spiral fracture of tibia, soft tissues undamaged compression often causes rupture of gas-filled lung or intestine, but muscle and skin undamaged Injury occurs when energy applied exceeds the elastic limits (or tolerance) of the tissues.
Whether or not injury occurs following the application of energy, in whatever form, depends on Physical and Biological factors.
PHYSICAL FACTORS
1) Degree of Force or K.E. applied:
Force = Mass x Acceleration
Kinetic Energy = 1/2 Mass x Velocity2
Energy depends on mass of weapon or projectile, but on the square of its velocity
Crash energy = (mph)2 x 0.034 Stopping distance in feet
2) Area over which force is applied:
-same force spread over larger area is less likely to injure at site of impact edge or tip of knife allows a great concentration of force applied edge of a plank is more damaging than its flat face heel of stilletto is more damaging than its sole
Soft object deforms and flattens
3) Duration over which force is applied:
longer duration allows tissues at site of impact to deform and dissipate the applied energy eg fall onto soft surface (increases duration and area of impact) seat belt stretching slows down the rate of transfer of kinetic energy to the body and spreads the area of impact over the trunk (c.f. forehead on dash)
4) Direction of application:
Transfer of kinetic energy from weapon or projectile is incomplete with a glancing blow or exiting bullet (some wounding potential is wasted) and complete when the weapon or bullet come to rest on/in the body
BIOLOGICAL FACTORS
1) Mobility of the body part
Fixed parts absorbs all applied energy.
Mobile parts are able to transform KE into movement
2) Anticipation and coordination e.g.-boxer rolling with a punch spreads out the duration of impact, catching a cricket ball, rolling with a fall
3) Biomechanical properties of tissue
Different tissues have different strengths and weaknesses
-skin is elastic and more resistant than underlying tissues (Bruise > Laceration)
-blood vessels more resistant to compression than stretching
-bone more resistant to bending than to torsion
-hollow or fluid-filled organs sensitive to compression
-brain (semi-fluid) more resistant to direct impact than rotational impact (–> shearing of nerve fibres)
-bone and joint may transmit force to a weak point
So, the object which can stretch, squeeze, tear and deshape a human tissue, resulting in definite injuries (scratches, bruises, abrasions, lacerations, fractures etc.) is termed as blunt.
Some kinds of Blunt objects
INJURIES caused by BLUNT OBJECTS
We name blunt such objects, which, operating on man body by its traumatizing surface, squeeze, deshape, drag apart the cloths, causing the injuries typical for them: abrasions, scratches, bruises, wounds, breaks, fractures, etc.
There are such types of blunt objects (for А.І.Muhanov, 1974, 1988):
1.Objects with flat prevalent surface.
2.Objects with flat limited surface.
3.Objects with spherical surface.
4.Objects with cylindrical surface.
5.Objects with trihedral corner.
6.Objects with rib or dihedral corner.
Blunt objects inflict definite kinds of the injuries: abrasions, scratches, bruises, wounds, fractures, placing, breaks of internal organs and cloths, etc.
Abrasions, (scratches, excoriations)
Abrasion From L atin a b– from and r adere– t o scrape Syn. Scratch, Graze Defn. ” a portion of the body surface from which the skin or mucous membrane has been crushed or removed by rubbing” A superficial injury, not involving the full thickness of the skin, i.e. confined to epidermis/dermis.
Due to
(1) Direct impact: imprint (may reflect pattern of causative surface) or
(2) Tangential impact: graze or scratch (may reflect direction of impact)
Always occurs at the site of impact
Abrasion is a superficial injury of outer layer of the skin caused due to sliding of the blunt object against the skin
Typical abrasion
Surface of fresh abrasion is pink whether pink-red, moisture, soft, painful, disposed beneath of the surface of unharmed skin. After shapeation of abrasion on its surface comes forward a liquid, which contains albumens and cellular blood elements (excudate). Water partially evaporates, and albumen interfuses with epidermis remainders, convolves and shapes on abrasion more-less thick crusta, which afterwards rises over skin surface.
Dimensions of separate abrasions are small and vacillate in boundary paths 2-
On surface whether edges of the abrasions can be kept the exfoliated particles of the epidermis. The top layers of the skin sometimes take off by sliding object like the layer.
Abrasion has various shapes, but prevail indeterminate shape, round, oblong, like ribbon, broken for object sliding counting.
А.І.Кrаt and V.M.Rubin (1982 y.) offered to distinguish such stages and periods in cicatrization of abrasions, which accomplishs into following middle dates:
1.stage – a fresh abrasion (first day);
2.stage – shapeation of crusta: 1st period – crusta is beneath unharmed skin whether on its level (1-2 day); 2nd period – crusta rises over level of ambient skin (3-8 day);
3.stage – falling away of crusta: 1st period – the edges of crusta few elevated (6-10 day); 2nd period – crusta partially fell away (8-15 day); 3rd period – a full crusta felling away (11-18 day);
4.stage – traces from the abrasion (on 30-150 day).
Fleecing of skin ordinary takes place posthumously. Surface, devoid of horny layer, dry out, shapeing something deep-laid beeswax-grey whether brown-yellow blot, sometimes with red hue and and looking over of vessels.
Sense of abrasions in forensic medicine is great:
This is the sign of violence
It suggests the action of blunt object
It suggests the site of external impact
Identification of object
Kind of violence
Time of injury
BRUISES (ecchymoses)
Bruise (from Old Englis h b rysan– to crush, O ld French b ruser–t o break Syn. Contusion, Ecchymosis Defn. “escape of blood from ruptured small vessels (vein, capillaries, arterioles) into the surrounding tissues” The resulting discolouration is seen through the overlying intact skin. Due to blunt force trauma. Site, shape, size, severity of bruising are very variable
Bruise is an infiltration of the blood into the tissues following the rupture of vessels as result of application of blunt force
bruise
Haemorrhage or bleeding is the escape of blood from any part of the vascular system. Haemorrhage can also be external, from a skin wound, or internal into a body cavity. Bruising is haemorrhage into the surrounding tissues. Bruising may be seen in skin, muscle or any internal organ.
Petechiae– pin head size bruise < 2mm
Due to BLUNT FORCE TRAUMA
Moving object strikes the stationary body (blow with fist or weapon)
Moving body strikes a stationary object (fall) pinching or squeezing
Often associated with skin abrasion or laceration (the more elastic overlying skin may be undamaged)
Bruising less often associated with incised or stab wounds which allow outward escape of blood from cut vessels
EXTERNAL BRUISING
Superficial bruise rapidly appears at the site of impact. Bleeding in the subcutaneous tissue seen as discolouration through the semi-translucent skin
INTERNAL BRUISING
Not visible at surface
Deeper bruise in muscle or internal organ will not be visible through overlying fat and skin. e.g. neck in strangulation, fatal brain injuries, blows to chest & abdomen
The site of bruising does not necessarily reflect site of trauma.
Bleeding into tissues may continue for some time after impact under circulatory pressure.
Extravasated blood tracks along natural/traumatic planes of least resistance, influenced by gravity and body movement. e.g. blow on temple –> bruise on cheek fractured jaw –> bruising oeck fractured hip –> bruise on thigh
Delayed appearance on body surface
Deep bruising may take upto 24 hours to appear at surface (come out). Re-examination of a body or live victim after this time may reveal bruises not initially apparent. Ultraviolet light may
disclose an otherwise unidentifiable bruise. Breakdown of RBCs with time (haemolysis) eleases breakdown pigments which may spread outwards and stain the tissues over a wider area then the original intact red blood cells of the fresh bruise. Pigments may spread closer to the overlying translucent skin thus becoming visible on the surface a few days after injury.
DEGREE OF FORCE
Skin has greater elastic limit than underlying fat and blood vessels making subcutaneous bruising more common than skin laceration. Degree of force cannot be accurately deduced from the size of a bruise. Although heavy impact will generally cause a large bruise, severity of bruising depends on:
(1) Anatomical site: over bony prominence (shin, cheeks), lax, vascular tissue (eyelid, orbit) fatty tissue (buttocks) will bruise easily. Escaped blood has room to accumulate in lax tissues. Resilient muscle of anterior abdominal wall rarely bruises (although there may be severe underlying visceral injury). Dense, tightly bound tissue, e.g. palms, soles, rarely bruises. Dense fibrous tissue physically restricts accumulation of blood.
(2) Age
Infants have loose, delicate, fatty tissues which bruise easily. Elderly: degeneration of vessels and connective tissue allows easy bruising
(3) Obesity & Sex
Obese individuals bruise more easily than lean due to a greater proportion of subcutaneous fat Females generally bruise more easily due having a greater proportion of subcutaneous fat than males
(4) Disease of clotting
“spontaneous” bruising (haemophilia, leukaemia and platelet disorders), some infections (meningitis), liver disease ( including alcoholism), vitamin C deficiency (scurvey), poor nutrition, medications
(5) Skin colour black skin may mask bruising. UV light needed.
AGE AND COLOUR CHANGE IN BRUISES
-immediately DARK RED (the colour of capillary blood)
-soon turns DUSKY PURPLE
-subsequent colour changes very variable in timing and result from HAEMOLYSIS by enzymes and cellular products.
Colour changes begin at the periphery and progress towards centre if large. Smaller bruises may change colour uniformly. Pigments, including bilirubin and haemosiderin are released from haemoglobin within degenerating red blod cells
Subsequent colour changes:
1. BROWN
2. GREEN 4-5 days or more
3. YELLOW 7-10 days or more
4. STRAW
5. DISAPPEARS 14-15 days (range 1-4 weeks)
A small bruise in a healthy adult may disappear in 1 week. A love bite (Hickey) may vanish in 2 or 3 days.
N.B. The time course is very variable time course depends on adequacy of lymphatic and venous drainage, size and depth of bruise, anatomical site, age of person (v. slow in elderly) and general health Accurate dating of an individual bruise is difficult. Distinguishing FRESH from OLD is easier and often important, e.g. repeated assault, child abuse
POST MORTEM LIVIDITY (hypostasis, livor mortis) The settling of blood into the lowermost blood vessels under gravity after the circulation ceases. Results in a pinkish discolouration of the skin in the dependent parts of the body. Blood vessels compressed by pressure of contact with clothing or supporting surface will not fill and the area remains pale (contact or pressure pallor). Lividity is sometimes confused with bruising. Distribution and pallor help to discriminate. Incision of the skin shows oozing of blood from cut, engorged vessels which can be rinsed away in lividity. Incision of a bruise reveals escape of blood into the tissues which cannot be rinsed away. Escape of blood cells and haemolytic pigments from vessels into the surrounding tissues due to putrefactive breakdown may be difficult to distinguish from bruising.
There are such kinds of bruises: bruise, haematoma, petechiae and ecchymosis. The own bruises are superficial and deep. Superficial bruises loud already after 20-30 min after trauma, and their intensity and dimensions augment while blood outpours. Deep effusions of blood at first do not look over the skin and into first 2-3 days after trauma caot to appear.
Haematoma is the limited deposit of blood in tissues, that some heaves up skin or mucous envelope and shapes for tissue layers moving apart counting whether organs thickness.
Petechiae are the shallow, like-drop, round shape effusions of blood of red colour into skin whether mucous envelope.
Ecchymosis are more large, limited, non-shapeed hemorrhage of red colour into skin, serose whether mucous layers.
The size of bruises is different – from small (“dropped“) to extraordinarily spacious, that occupy one or more part of body.
Shape of the bruises can be various, but the most often oval whether round with clear edges, specially in fresh cases.
Like-ribbon bruises, specially looped, are the result of blows by cord, strap whether other object, shapeed in loop appearance.
In majority of cases the bruises do not have some definite shape.
Elementary bruise colour is always crimson or dark blue. In process of time its colour changes, bruise, as the saying is, “flowers”.
In bruise place on skin whether mucous envelope no traces usually does not remain, but sometimes during some time on skin is kept dark pigmentation.
Effusions of blood into connecting eyes envelope, into skin, sometimes into transitional lips part, ordinary resolve without discolouration crimson, gradually diminishing in intensity and dimensions.
POST-MORTEM BRUISING can occur but needs great force to produce small bruise. After death blood is under physical pressure only. There is only a passive ooze from blood vessels ruptured after death rather than the active extravasation under pressure which occurs in life. Most likely to occur within areas of post mortem lividity where blood is under greater physical pressure and over bony prominences where tissues may be crushed against the underlying bone, e.g. back of the head.
SHAPE AND SIZE of bruises are very variable & poor indicator of causative object. Expansion and movement blur the outline. Some bruises inflicted with a small hard object, immediately prior to death may retain the pattern of the causative object. Rapid death will limit the extension and blurring of the outline which usually occurs under circulatory blood pressure. e.g. bumper, grille or headlight on pedestrian, neck ligature, blow over clothing or jewellery An associated imprint abrasion is more useful.
CLASSICAL PATTERNS OF BRUISING
Patterned Intradermal bruise due to impact with a hard, patterned object with ridges/grooves. Skin over ridges is compressed and vessels remain intact. Skin forced into grooves and dermal vessels ruptured. The resulting accumulation of a small amount of blood, near the epidermis may demonstrate the obvious pattern of the causal surface (tyre, shoe tread, car bumper, clothing, gun muzzle) It is often useful to trace the outline onto an acetate sheet for later comparison.
Finger pad bruises are round or oval, slightly larger than the finger tips due to outward spread of blood. Due to gripping by fingertips in forceful restraint Found on -limbs and face (child abuse), thighs (rape), neck (throttling (manual strangulation)), arms (forceful restraint or post mortem movement of the body
Tramline bruising due to a rod shaped weapon or stick. Compression of vessels centrally, not usually damaged unless crushed onto bone. Traction causes rupture of vessels along edges of rod. A solid stick bruise is limited to the convexity of the body surface (remember that a soft body part such as a buttock will mould and flatten. A flexible strap or flex willwrap around the convexity producing a longer and often curved tramline bruise.
Doughnut bruise due to a spherical object (cricket ball)
Love bite (hickey) Not a bite. No teeth marks. Suction bruise caused by firm application of the lips against the skin, forming an air-tight seal, oral suction causing a shower of petechial bruises from rupture of numerous small vessels. Normally found on teenagers after the weekend! Also seen oeck, breasts in sexual assault. Must be human in origin. A similar appearance is seen
between the dental arches of a true bite.
Counter pressure bruises of bony prominences of shoulder blades, sacrum and back due to forceful restraint against wall/ground. More common in muscles than skin.
Black eye (peri-orbital haematoma) fist blow to orbit fractured skull (R.T.A., gunshot) tracking from forehead bruise.
Punching is directed at the upper body , especially the face Causes bruising, abrasion, laceration over bony prominences and teeth, fractured nose & face. Bruising or abrasion of knuckles due to throwing punches
Kicking (or shod foot assault)
Stamping, jumping may reproduce the pattern of the sole Glancing kick may cause a scuffed abrasion Direct blow (swinging kick) may result in bruising, laceration or a curved imprint abrasion Typical target sites: face, neck, loin, groin, back, chest. Associated internal injury is often severe
Bruising of Various ages: suggests repeated assaults (child abuse, wife/husband beating, elderly (beating or poor balance), alcoholics
Medical interventi on
–sternal and cardiac bruising
-bruising around needle puncture marks
-pinching skin to test conscious level (butterfly bruise)
N.B. Bruising usually due to Accident or assault; it is rarely self-inflicted (too painful and unimpressive!)
Forensic significance of bruises
This is the sign of violence
It suggests the action of blunt object
It suggests the site of external impact
Identification of object
Kind of violence
Time of injury
Degree of violence
Lacerations (wounds, vulnare)
Laceration From Lati n l acerare– to tear. Botanical term- irregular edges Defn. Full thickness tearing of skin or tissue due to stretching and crushing by blunt force Characteristics: Ragged edge, Associated bruising/abrasion, Tissue bridges Provides little specific information about the causal object
Lacerations are wounds in which the skin and underlying tissues are torn as a result of blunt forces application.
Laceration
BLUNT FORCE TRAUMA by moving object or fall. Pinning, crushing and stretching forces result in splitting and tearing of tissues. Same type of trauma which causes bruising and abrasion but full thickness injury Typically over BONY PROMINENCES where tissue is pinned and crushed against underlying bone, e.g. scalp, eyebrow, cheek, shin A single blow may cause more than one laceration Soft tissue areas of limbs may be lacerated by a blunt projecting object which pulls obliquely against the tension of the skin causing stretching and tearing.
Rolling/grinding movement of vehicle wheel strips and tears
Lacerations are characterised by:
1). Ragged edges (torn apart), bulging fat, crushed hair bulbs
2). Associated Bruising and Abrasion of skin edges and adjacent tissue (BFT)
3). Tissue Bridges in depth of wound (intact nerves, vessels, tendons)
A tangential component may give one clean-cut edge, other ragged, undercut or flap-like.
Typical signs of lacerations are following:
various shape and different their size;
their edges are unequal, frequently crushed, sometimes thin;
on wounds edges almost always epidermis is fleeced on different width, and sometimes – even of concrete shape;
vascular, hair (on head) or connecting-tissue membranes between contrary edges, most often in wounds ends;
● the wounds ends are rounded, blunt, with slights tear, sometimes can be sharp.
This is the general (group) wounds signs from blunt objects, because they meet attached to injuries by different blunt objects, irrespective of their specific properties.
There are also specific morphological signs from the action of concrete blunt objects which are directly correspondented in their classification.
1.The wounds from action of blunt objects with flat prevalent surface, as a rule, have a branchy whether sinuous shape zigzag, sometimes with ramifications; thr edges are teared, with numerous slights tears.
2.From action of blunt object with flat limited surface are generated the small wounds in majority of cases (3-
typical laceration
3.Spherical surface of blunt object omits the wounds radiant for shape (3-5 rays and more); fleecing of epidermis in them round whether oval shape; central part of wounds is saucer– whether watering-can-like deep-laid, in centre – considerably – crushed, thin, up to shapeation of defect of three-cornered whether indeterminate shape, as a result of some abbreviation of injuryd tissue.
4.The objects with cylindrical surface usually cause the chinky oblong, wounds, and wound longitude always accords with object landmark into blow moment.
Laceration caused by cylindrical instrument
5.The wounds from action of object with trihedral corner have a radiant shape (but there can’t be present more, than 3 rays), sometimes pyramidal in centre, scratching in them three-cornered shape and disposed in central part.
6.A blunt object with rib drifts the chinky wounds, edges of which in point of equal, sinuous, scratched in appearance of narrow stripe, locally fleecing of epidermis can stay outed.
The blunt objects can bring on injury of skin, in shapeation mechanism of which tension prevails, them mark as cracks, slights tear, breaks and tearing off.
The injuries from tension have typical properties. They’re linear, with the shape of spindle, dispose by groups, ends in them are sharp, and equal edges, by what remind of injury from sharp objects. Ripping of edges in such wounds is absent. The cracks, slights tear whether breaks in groups usually are identically competent, disposed in-parallel one to one.
INTERPRETATION OF WOUNDS
(1) Causative object or weapon
Imprint abrasion from direct impact with patterned surface
Trace material in sliding abrasion, laceration
Stab may indicate shape, width, length of instrument
(2) Order of Infliction
Tentative or scattered FIRST
Fatal or grouped LATER
Distant shots before close shots
(3) Manner of infliction
By assessment of Circumstances, Scene of death, Pattern of injuries as a whole
SELF-INFLICTED:
Gunshot wounds and ncised or stabbed wounds with sharp or pointed object. are preferred
Blunt force injuries are rarely self-inflicted.
Accessible target sites (often unilateral with “handedness”) e.g. incisions to wrists, cubital fossae, neck, groins stabs to chest (precordium), abdomen (epigastrium) shots to mouth, temple, heart
Clothes drawn aside
Multiple, Shallow, Tentative “Hesitation wounds” e.g. incisions to wrist and neck stabs to chest and abdomen
Closely grouped, Parallel, Same Direction e.g .”sawed” incision in same track stabs at same angle partial withdrawal and reinsertion
One or two potentially fatal
Scars from previous attempts
More than one method tried
ASSAULT:
Any type of wound (abrasion, bruise, laceration, incision, stab, gunshot) frequently in combination
Punching -directed at upper body , especially the face. Causes bruising, abrasion, laceration over bony prominences and teeth and fractures of nose of facial bones
Kicking-stamping, jumping –> pattern of sole glancing kick –> scuffed abrasion direct blow –> bruising, laceration. May also see a curved imprint abrasion
Sites: face, neck, loin, groin, back, chest.
Associated internal injury is often severe
Sharp force is favoured -stabs & incisions
– Any site – often inaccessible to victim, e.g. back!
– Usually multiple
– Wounds aimed at vital area but scattered and grouped
A single wound suggests the victim was sleeping, drunk, drugged or incapacitated. The single wound is usually targeted (stab to heart, shot to head)
– Lack the unhurried site of election – no time to chose
– Inflicted through clothes
– More uniform force
– Multiple directions e.g. of incisions or stabs
– Several may be potentially fatal
– Associated defence injuries
Defence injuries- a pattern of injuries sustained by taking protective action against anticipated trauma (accidental or assault). Indicates that victim was conscious, not completely suprised by attack and at least partly mobile.
Typically seen on hands and forearms.
Bruises, abrasions, incisions, stabs, gunshots
Absence does not exclude assault (surprised)
Secondary injuries due to falls onto nearby objects
ACCIDENTAL
Any type of wound, any site, usually single
Clothing involved, defence and secondary injuries common.
Forensic significance of wounds
CLINICAL IMPORTANCE
Often little external blood loss (except scalp) due to crushing and retraction of vessels.
Associated internal injury/bleeding. Wound infection frequent (F.B.).Heals by scarring
FORENSIC IMPORTANCE
1. Shape and size not usually related to causal object
2. Trace evidence in wound (F.B.)
3. Rarely self-inflicted
EXAMPLES
Crescentic/circular … round-headed hammer
Y-shaped … metal rod
Inside lips (trauma against teeth) … blow to mouth
Flaying laceration … rolling/stretching of skin over limb in R.T.A.
Perineum … rape
Stellate … heavy vertical blow.
Fractures (fracturae)
Fractures is called a full or partial violation of bone whether cartilage safety, a result of fast-acting considerable force, as a rule, are generated attached to action on bone of blunt object and beginnings by reason of it such deshapeation appearances: bend, thrust (cut), tension, compression whether twisting. The fractures arise as in force application place (in tie with what are called local), so and on distance from it (remote fractures). Contradistinguish full and incomplete, lonely and numerous, open and cover, linear and splintered fractures.
In forensic-medical practice often meet and are in great importance the skull bone, long finitenesses bone and ribs fractures.
Skull bone fractures. The local skull fractures shape into time of immediate contact of blunt object with skull. The prevalent surface of blunt object causes splintered fracture in appearance of constrained or flat allotment, by size 40-80 cm2 and more, round whether oval shape.
Fracture of the skull
From blow by flat limited surface of blunt object in skull bone are generated the pressed or perfprated fractures, which for size and shape totally whether partially reproduce the contours of surface.
Fracture caused by flat limited surface
The Objects with spheral surface in typical cases cause the small pressed skull vault bone fractures, rounded by circulation crack, with falling back of separate pieces and shapeation of dip, which reminds the part of sphere.
Very typical fractures remain from action of the objects with trihedral corner: unreserved, pressed fractures of three-cornered shape (on vault surface ) in appearance of trihedral pyramid, a top of which is directed in skull.
The blunt objects with rib (by whether dihedral corner) in skull bone shape pressed, oblong fracture which has some peculiarities. From ribbing action arises long crack with split off edges in external osseous plate, in-parallel to it and on some distance from it shape still two some arched cracks with equal, plumb edges.
The similar fractures cause the blunt objects with cylindrical surface.
The remote skull fractures arise far from application place of great force and appear in most cases attached to compression of skull or attached to blow by blunt object with wide contiguity surface.
Attached to flating, general skull deshapeation, when a troupe head aqcuire unusual to it appearance and shape, that frequently is observed attached переїзді on the strength of it transport object, to define these types of crack under dissection time impossibly.
Fractures of long finitenesses bone. In most cases the fractures of long tubular bone arise from bend deshapeation and twisting, more seldom – from deshapeation (cut) of thrusting .
In ordered to find concrete fracture properties attached to corpse dissection injuryd bone and all of its fragments must be taken out, to modeled, to dried out and to glued together.
Other frequent kind of deshapeation of long bone is its fracture as a result of rotation or twisting, attached to which a fracture shapes spiral.
For torsion fracture is typical one whether several screw lines, which envelop several bone surfaces in direction of twisting and which go under corner about 45° to bone landmark.
The ribs fractures are local and remote. The local fractures are generated in local outward on breasts. The rib whether group of contiguous ribs in force application place sags inside of thoracic cavity. An internal ribbing plate exposes to tension, and external – to compression. On internal ribbing surface the fracture ordinary gapes, it line and edges clear, some wavy, plumb.
In external ribbing plate, where prevail compression forces, fracture line also transversal whether slanting and transversal, but zigzag, thinly – rectilinear, in row of cases with oblong cracks. Edges of fracture are unequal, toothed, rumpled, split off, pressed, sometimes elevated, lay one on another like tile (“peak”), sometimes is generated billowed concentration of compact layer.
Remote ribs fractures are generated on considerable distance from application place of external effort to breasts , that typically for squeezing of thorax. Attached to it natural ribbing curve augments, an external its plate stretches and brokes first, internal – suffers compression.
Injuries of internal organs
A.I. Muchanov (1988) picks out such types of injuries of internal organs.
Slaughter (contusion) is injury in appearance of effusions of blood of different localization by reason of violation of parenchyma organ safety attached to uncrippled capsule. Crack is linear superficial sinuous injury of capsule of parenchymal organ and thin layer of its parenchyma. Tear is more deep, but in case of compression of edges also linear injury, which does not arrive at organ middle. Break is more deep injury; may be incomplete, when parts of organ are joint by capsule and thin layer of parenchyma (less 1/4 of general organ thickness), and full, when an organ is parted totally or between its parts remained only capsule pieces. Tearing off is a full compartment of internal organ by reason of breaks its fixative tie, vessels and crushing, etc. Crushing is the destruction of the part of internal organ with transshapeation of its tissue into pappy mass or into a lot of shallow deshapeed morsels.
Contradistinguish the local and remote injuries of internal organs.
Ruptures of the liver
ASSOCIATED INTERNAL INJURIES
Surface wounds may be informative but are often simply the trivial markers of lethal underlying
injury.
Head injury (separate lecture notes) by fall, blow or RTA Head is heavy, mobile and unstable. Scalp bruising and laceration common over bone.
Skull deformed by impact. If excessive skull may fracture at the site of impact: linear, radiating, depressed, hinge, ring, contre-coup. Injury to blood vessels and brain may occur without overlying fracture.
Analagy: blancmange (brain), wrapped in cling film (arachnoid), in paper bag (dura), inside a cardboard box (skull), wrapped in brown paper (scalp). Any layer may be damaged by impact (blow) or dropping (fall)
Intracranial haemorrhage often follows head injury:
Extradural– fracture tears artery~
– easily overlooked (concussion, lucid, coma)
– immediate or delayed accumulation of blood
– causes pressure on brain
– amenable to surgical decompression
Subdural – common in elderly, children, alcoholics
– small bridging veins torn by trivial impact or rotation
– may remain asymptomatic, partially healed and an incidental finding at autopsy
Subarachnoid– natural (aneurysm rupture) or traumatic,
-ass. with contusion, laceration of brain or blow to side of neck often rapidly fatal
Brain injury
-may occur without fracture or intracranial haemorrhage
-rotation & accel/decel. injury more damaging than direct impact against the fixed, immobile head
-blow accelerates the head causing contusion at the point of impact (coup contusion)
-fall decelerates the head causing more obvious contusion at the diametrically opposite point (contre-coup) contusion where the brain glides over the irregular, jagged contours of the skull.
Analogy is box of jelly
Coup= Kick (head is accelerated)
Contre-coup= Dropping the box (all contents decelerated)
Typically a backward fall striking the back of the head (occiput) on the ground causes scalp abrasion, bruising or laceration with localised coup contusion at the occipital pole and more marked contre-coup contusion over the frontal and temporal poles where skull surface is rough. May also occur in a fall onto one side but not after a forward fall. Greater force may lacerate the brain
Deep intracerebral haemorrhage may occur Widespread subtle microscopic nerve fibre (Diffuse Axonal Injury)injury is common due to shearing stress of rotational impact or deceleration Analogy is shaking or kicking a TV set Associated swelling (cerebral oedema) is often fatal by raising the pressure within the cranial cavity (raised ICP) squeezing and damaging vital structures.
Facial injury
-accidents (RTA)
-assault by punch, kick, blunt weapon
-fragile facial bones susceptible to injury
-bleeding into nose, mouth and sinuses often profuse, may obstruct air passages.
Neck injury
-vulnerable area, access to vital structures such as the trachea, large vessels (carotid arteries, jugular veins)
-sensitive major nervous conections and reflexes
-cervical spine and spinal cord
-incisions, stabs, blows and pressure very dangerous (air embolism)
Chest injury
-heart, major blood vessels and lungs vulmerable to impact, compression and penetration
-blunt impact of RTA is common multiple rib’s prevent respiration pneumothorax, lacerated lung, heart.
-lacerated aorta due to deceleration
-site of election for stab and gunshot wounds with profuse haemorrhage into pericardial sac or pleural cavities
Abdominal injury
-Abdominal skin injury is rarely seen, particularly if impact is over a broad area
-Liver, spleen, kidneys, intestines are vulnerable to compression and laceration against the spine following the blunt impact of RTA or assault
-Site of election for stab wounds with penetration of vascular organs such as liver, spleen, kidney, mesentery or major vessels such as aorta, vena cava with severe blood loss into the peritoneal cavity
-Peritonitis may follow intestinal damage.
Limb injuries
Common in many accidents (RTA), falls, assaults
Fracture (= a disruption in the continuity of a bone)
Result of direct or indirect force,
may be complete or incomplete
closed (simple) or open (compound)
transverse, longitudinal, oblique, spiral
comminuted (more than 2 fragments)
compression of spine, 5th metacarpal (boxer’s )
depressed of skull
stress pathological in weakened, diseased bone (osteoporosis, malignancy)
Fat embolism clusters of fat cells escape from within the central marrow cavity of a fractured bone or subcutaneous fat and enter the circulation via veins. Become entrapped in the small vessels (mainly capillaries) of the lungs or may pass through the lungs to block the capillaries of the brain, kidneys, heart and elsewhere. Pyrexia, skin rash, coma, renal failure. May be fatal.
INJURIES ATTACHED TO FALLING DOWN
Properties and heaviness of injuries depend on height of fall, body mass, peculiarities of the surface on which body bumps, from body allotments, on which blow was taken, from that, whether was fall straight whether successive, and from other factors.
Pick out three man fall variants:
fall on plane or from height of own growth, under man motion time by step, attached to fast walking, running;
fall from some metres and some ten of metres: from houses windows, into shoots clear space, from balconies, multistory buildings, bridges, from trees, etc;
fall from bumper height (ten and hundreds metres ).
Fall on plane can happen from stand-up regulation, attached to walking or running.
Attached to fall on one’s back arises a typical injury – a crack of cervical bone, which is directed to big cervical hole, sometimes avoids it on skull base and reaches the pyramids.
Fracture of the skull due to falling down
Fall on plane from height of own growth is a typical trauma of persons in state of alcoholic intoxication.
Fall attached to fast motion, to running can be met while escaping from pursuers, catching somebody, attached to employment by sport as accidental trauma.
Attached to fall from height of a little metres the injuries depend on that, on which body surface disappointed man. From fall on trilbies arise the shins bone fractures, reams, less frequent – thighs, traumatize the heel bone, happen the circular skull base bone fractures. Attached to fall on back the shoulder blades and spine fractures may be often found. Attached to fall on hands and knees are generated the symmetric forearm bone fractures in allotment of carpo-radial joints, fractures of thigh-bone, sometimes patella’s. The circular skull base bone fractures are observed attached to fall on sinciput or seats.
Attached to fall from height of few ten metres arise the same injuries such, but they’re more vast whether massive. Fall from height 20-
Attached to fall on head the injuries are disposed on one its surface. Presence of some injuries and on different, specially contrary head surfaces witnesses that they happened from other reson, and, possibly, from action of outsider hand, before fall of body from height.
So-and-so, the typical general fall signs from great height are: disparity of external injuries to internal attached to considerable dominance last, numerous signs of general body shock (multilocal, spotty effusions of blood into fixative vehicle of internal organs, their intercourses, gates, are reproached; parallel cracks disposition, tears whether breaks of parenchymal organs), as a rule, one-sided, injuries localization.
Also attached to fall on trilbies are the symmetric multisplinter fractures of heel bones, tarsus fractures with deshapeation of talocrural joints, are tired out the fractures of crural bone, fractures of thigh-bone neck and hollows of coxae joints, pelvis, fractures of the vertebrae bodies from compression, sometimes – annular skull base bone fractures. Attached to fall on seat arise the fractures of pelvis bones, compressial vertebrae bodies fractures, less frequent – annular skull base bone fractures. A fall on head forwards by multisplinter skull vault bone fractures, typical for action of blunt object with prevalent surface. Attached to such fall arise also the compressial and splinter spine fractures, specially jugular its department, sternum and ribsfractures. Least injuries shapes attached to flat fall, because blow force divides on considerable plane.
Morphological appearances of injuries caused before death
If from wound moment passed few days or hours, then settlement of question as to the supravitality of trauma origin does not bring on difficulties. Considerably difficult, and sometimes impossibly to solve a question when injury happened in agony period or just after coming in death.
Injury supravitality (or trauma is supravital) – injury, which grew up in living man. The signs of supravital injuries origin are:
● considerable external whether internal bleeding indicating on activity the hearts;
● general expressed corpse anaemia, Minakov’s blot:
● vertical blood streams on cloths whether body and blood sparks on ambient objects;
● aspiration and swallowing of blood attached to neck organs wound, skull base bone fractures;
● finding of blood in urinary bladder attached to its safety and injury of kidneys;
● parenchymal-cellular, osseous whether air, fatty embolism of lungs and heart, thrombosis of shallow vessels;
● retraction (abbreviation) of tissues in wound allotment, abbreviation of muscles like humps attached to dismemberment of body;
● thick blood thrombs, effusions of blood into soft tissues in injuries allotment;
Ante-mortem bruise
● presence ardently-proliferative processes in tissues;
● traumatic (inflammatory) oedema;
● finding erythrocytes and cells, containing hemosyderine, in the regional lymphatic glands, etc.
All of phenomena, which give a possibility to set injuries supravitality, one can be divided on general taxis and local changes.
Injury, which grew up post mortem, can be accidental and intentional. Accidental posthumous injuries sometimes arise attached to irregular troupe transport, attached to unskilled assignment of medicare to the patient who died. Aforethought posthumous injuries can blow in killer to the dead with vengeance, attached to dramatization of accident, simulating of suicide, attached to criminal troupe dismemberment. Posthumous are the injuries, associated with necropsy, his artificial conservation.
Injury remoteness is the time, which passed from the moment of the infliction of trauma to human till its examination by doctor or till deaths.
It is important to set: whether death is due to trauma or not, whether it was done just before the death, when exactly the trauma was done.
Injuries remoteness is determined by bruises colour, skin temperature changes in their disposition places, by the dynamics of the reactively-proliferative processes attached to bruises or wounds cicatrization and scars shapeing .
The bone fractures dates are established due to the development degree of the callosity. A fracture accretion duration depends upon the kind of the broken bone .
SURVIVAL TIME AND ACTING CAPABILITY AFTER WOUNDING
Post-injury survival time is important in reconstructing events
How long did the victim survive?
Was the victim still capable of fighting, resisting or fleeing?
Some injuries are incompatible with any significant survival, however fit or young the victim.
Destruction of the brainstem or arch of aorta cause almost instantaneous loss of consciousness and rapid death.
Multiplicity of wounds and involvement of the heart and brain are associated with a short postinjury survival period. The effects of injury to major nerves, muscles and joints, followed by bleeding and shock will ultimately incapacitate the victim. The time taken to do so, and what actions are still possible is very difficult to estimate. A suprising amount of activity is often reported following infliction of an obviously lethal injury. Many remarkable examples in the literature. Levy & Rao suggest that overall, 71% of stab wound victims and 49% of gunshot victims survive at least 5 minutes. The victim may not be aware of the injury initially. Pain is suppressed by the adrenaline response of “fight or flight” and vigorous activity may be maintained for a period of up to a few minutes when the will exists. Such activity will cease when physical factors such as blood loss lead to immobility, loss of consciousness or death.
Main effects of injury are bleeding and shock. Will ultimately incapacitate the victim. The time taken to do so, and what actions are still possible is very difficult to estimate. Activity varies from staggering a few paces to running considerable distances or up flights of stairs. Estimation of survival period is almost impossible. Numerous variables exist. Fit young adult will survive longer and be capable of greater activity than an elderly, infirm individual. Extensive destruction of the frontal cerebral lobes of the brain may permit survival and activity before death occurs from associated brain damage and shock.
How to describe the injury
To deduce the correct expert due to properties and injury paculiarities, to ground an object, which caused the trauma, shooting injury disposition, to set thermal whether chemical factor etc., to define a trauma mechanism, inlife whether posthumously it had happened, remoteness of its origin and to solve sometimes other questions, injuries should be carefully explored, thoroughly and correctly described.
To determination and describing of injury it is necessary to know: localization, appearance, amount, shape, size, depth, colour, edges properties, walls, bottom, relief, presence and bleeding disposition, area of disposition on surfaces body, girding cloths, outsider inclusions, cicatrization signs, other peculiarities (localization one with another, in cases of transport trauma – injuries distance from lower surfaces of reems, etc.).
Injury is marked in accordance with its medical term: abrasion, scratch, a bruise, wound, dislocation, a fracture, crack, broke, crushing, burned, etc.
It is indicated to figure up amount of injuries separately on each its appearance.
Important sense for forensicly-medical diagnistics has a injury shape, which better for all determine the geometrical figures whether other well-known objects.
Injury size should be measured in only accepted linear measures (centimetres whether millimetres).
The colour is of a great importance right to describing of bruises, scratches, wounds, burn whether freezed surfaces, girding their skins (general redness), different apportionments and particles (contamination, muck, soot, etc.). Colour of blood in wounds depth also can change from chemical influences (e.g., from gun-fire gases).
Should be also explored and described edges, ends, bottom and walls of the injuries.
Different injuries can be attended with relief change of traumatized allotments: swelling attached to bruise, effusion of blood, coming forward of bone splinters attached to fracture, falling back of allotment of dislocated joint, local enlargement attached to hypodermic muscles break, pressing into brain attached to sub– whether epidural haematoma, unlinear structure of staggered surface attached to thermal whether chemical burns and etc.
Direction of long landmark of injury on surface whether in point of body or separate organ is in much expert importance, specially for oblong injuries.
The outside inclusions can be found both in injury and around it.
Properties of ambient tissues can be different. Ordinary around injuries there are no changes, sometimes near basic injury one can see additional, sometimes appear different carnage.
Check off cicatrization signs, degree of its expression, specially attached to research of scratches, wounds, fractures (for sciagram whether attached to research of corpse), that is in important for diagnistics of trauma origin remoteness. Investigate and describe other injuries peculiarities attached to their presence. With aim of possibilities expansion and objectivisation of got data expediently to employ immediate stereomicroscopy, sciagraphy of the objects in soft Bucci rays, method of coloured impresses, photography etc.
FORENSIC EXAMINATION OF INJURIES CAUSED BY SHARP INSTRUMENTS
INCISED WOUNDS
Syn: cuts, slashes From Lati n i ncidere– to cut into. Surgical term incision with scalpel
Definition: Clean division of the full thickness of skin (or other tissue) under the pressure of a sharp-edged instrument.
An incised wound is LONGER THAN IT IS DEEP due to swipe action.
Instrument is sharp-edged, such as: knife (linear, clean), jagged metal (irregular, jagged), broken glass
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN INCISION~
– clean cut, everted edges
– no tissue bridges or abrasion of margins
– linear or elliptical shape, often gapes
– often deeper at starting end
– jagged if inflicted through loose, folded skin.
Chop wound is a variant of an incision. Has clean-cut edges but an abraded margin due to inversion and friction against the sides of the wide blade on insertion.
FORENSIC IMPORTANCE
Reflect sharp edge, not weapon type
No trace evidence
Profuse external haemorrhage and air embolism
Danger to life depends on site and depth
Incised wounds may be Self-inflicted, assault or accident.
SELF INFLICTED
At sites of election (wrists, neck, cubital fossae, chest, abdomen, groin)
Suicidal cut Throat: tentative incisions (left side of neck if right handed), one or more deep, sweeping cuts, down from the left, across the mid-line, up towards the right ear. Sshallow deep centrally shallow. Cut slopes upwards and backwards. Incision isusually through level of thyrohyoid ligament and may be down to spine! Repetitive nicks at the base of the wound (sawing). Bleeding is venous, loss of consciousness is slow. Air embolism may occur.
OTHER SELF-INFLICTED INCISIONS
Fabricated assault – superficial wounds to head, left arm, chest abdomen, thighs.
Parasuicidal mutilation – face, arms, trunk … low self-esteem
ASSAULT INCISIONS
Compared to suicidal cuts, homicidal cuts:
– lack the unhurried election of site. May be aimed, but many miss.
– lie both higher and lower across neck
– no tentative cuts, all are forceful and deepen rapidly
– no repetition in same track
– slope backwards and downwards
– associated with ‘defence injuries’ to hands and arms
ACCIDENTAL INCISIONS
– random pattern
– usually single
– often deep and forceful
PENETRATING WOUNDS
(Syn: Stab & Puncture wounds) Puncture is “a small hole made with a sharp point” Definition: Penetrating injuries caused by separation of the skin and soft tissues under the pressure of a sharp or blunt pointed instrument, the greatest dimension being its depth.
ITS DEPTH EXCEEDS ITS LENGTH on the body surface.
Often appear trivial externally (short incision or laceration) BUT often causes internal trauma and haemorrhage.
Caused by thrusting of (or falling onto) 3 types of instrument
(1) Sharp and flat, e.g. knife STAB
(2) Sharp and thin, e.g. needle NEEDLE PUNCTURE
(3) Blunt, long and rigid, e.g. wooden stake, spike, screwdriver, tooth PUNCTURE
WOUND
PENETRATING – passes into but not through organ
PERFORATING OR TRANSFIXING – from Lati n p erforare, p er–t hrough & f orare– to bore passes through and through an organ
STAB WOUNDS
Descriptors of penetrating wounds
a) Damage to clothing (slashes, stabs through folds, blood flow & drip patterns, trace evidence)
b) Site in relation to anatomical landmarks, midline, heel.
c) Shape
d) Alignment (horizontal, vertical, oblique)
e) Size : length & width with edges opposed
f) Direction :in 3 planes
g) Depth
h) Damage to tissues along track
i) Effects : external & internal haemorrhage, pneumothorax, air embolism
Adequate description may provide vital information about :
1) Type of weapon (c): usually a knife
2) Dimensions of the weapon (e)
3) Taper of blade (e)
4) Movement of knife in wound (c)
5) Direction of thrust (f)
6) Depth of thrust (g)
7) Amount of force used
8) Likely effect on victim (h, i)
WOUND LENGTH
A straight in and out stab wound is slightly shorter than the width of the blade due to stretching of the skin over the point of the knife on insertion and elastic recoil on withdrawal. Wound length and width must be assessed with the edges taped together because the wound is often shortened and widened into an ellipse by skin elasticity (Langer’s lines of tension) and underlying muscle tone. Wound length < blade width
(1) stretching of skin over point on insertion and subsequent recoil on withdrawal.
(2) tapered blade not fully inserted
Wound length > blade width when blade does not pass straight in and out – entry and withdrawal at angle.
“Rocking” of knife on withdrawal. Cutting edge extends wound length The best indicator of blade width is the shortest (least rocking), deepest wound (weapon fully inserted)
SHAPE OF WOUND May indicate:
(1)Cross-sectional shape of knife blade e.g. – Double-edged blade –> Slit with two sharp ends
N.B. single edged knife may give similar wound due to clean splitting over blunt end
– Thin, single edge blade –> Triangular slit, one sharp end
– Thick, single-edged blade –> Slit with one sharp and one ‘fishtail’ end due to stretching & laceration over blunt edge
Stab wounds are typically elliptical with clean cut edges and no bruising or abrasion of margins (incision)
(2) Direction of insertion overhang of upper edge, bevel of lower edge N.B. The direction of the wound track through the tissues is assessed at post mortem, with the body lying flat on its back. The position of the internal organs is different in life, when standing, sitting and breathing.
(3) Movement of instrument on withdrawal
Small change in angle –> notch Twisting –> crescentic wound
WOUND TRACK DEPTH
< length of instrument if not fully inserted
> length of instrument if fully inserted and body surface compressed e.g. abdomen, chest.
A small penknife can perforate heart or abdominal aorta.
DEGREE OF FORCE
Wound depth is a poor indicator of force applied
Pressure required to penetrate is often slight with sharp tipped instrument
Depends on sharpness of point, not of cutting edge. Sharp tip requires little force to penetrate, blunt tip requires greater force.
Speed of weapon’s approach (F= 1/2 m v2): quick thrust penetrates skin more easily than slow, sustained pressure
Bony damage is useful indicator of depth and implies significant force
Most resistance offered by CLOTHES AND SKIN
The compressed skin ‘gives’ suddenly, releasing the energy stored in the compressed skin and tissue (elastic reservoir). Once the skin has been penetrated, the blade slips easily through the underlying muscle, internal organs and uncalcified cartilage, without the need for further application of force.
Analagy is stabbing a melon
Penetration of bone requires considerable force and may break the tip off the weapon.
A quick stab requires less force to penetrate than a slow push.
Forcible insertion may cause imprint abrasion or bruising of skin by the hilt of the knife.
Rare, most often on chest
Remember to consider counter-pressure by victim: falling or running onto instrument. The knife does not need to be supported rigidly if tip is sharp. Considerable force and determination
required to remove knife from clothed body.
EFFECTS OF STABBING
Victim may not initially be aware of injury. There may be little or no external blood loss. Internal blood loss may be profuse and rapidly fatal or slow enough to allow time for medical treatment. Main effect is bleeding. The time taken to incapacitate the victim and what actions are still possible is very difficult to estimate. A stab to the heart may bleed profusely out into the confined space of the pericardium. If pericardial defect is small or does not communicate with the pleural cavity cardiac tamponade may result (200-450ml). Left ventricular wound may partially reseal, resulting in slow blood loss or spontaneous healing. Thin-walled right ventricle less likely. Great vessels do not re-seal. Rate of bleeding from stab wound to the lung depends on the size of vessels cut. Large pulmonary veins & arteries branch outwards from the hilum. Peripheral stab bleeds less and may seal if lung collapses. Pneumothorax may itself be fatal. Cut through bronchus may bleed and obstruct airways.
Abdominal stab may penetrate major vessels, liver or spleen with rapid haemorrhage into the abdominal cavity. Stabbing to the head and face may allow penetration of bone in the region of the eye, nose and temple where bone is relatively thin. Pulmonary air embolism originating in a partially severed jugular vein may be rapidly fatal before much blood is lost. Severing a carotid artery or jugular vein results in rapid exanguination.
The surface of object, which colliding with body, operates on cloths, cutting, disconnecting or slitting them, is called sharp, and suitable objects sharp. The damages, that are generated from them, compose a damages group by sharp objects. Another words any object, which has sharp edge or sharp end (or that and other together), is termed in forensic medicine as sharp.
Sharp we name such objects, which, operating on man body whether his clothes by its edge whether end, cause damage with some properties. These properties depend on specific (group) peculiarities of sharp objects.
Some kinds of sharp instruments
The sharp objects are classified differently.
Cutting instruments
Stab instruments
Chopping instruments
By typical man body damages, that are generated from action of sharp objects, present dependence on article appearance and of mechanism of his action on cloths contradistinguish cut, chopped, sting-cut wounds. All of they characterize by some signs, inherent for action of certain sharp objects. These wounds signs we name general. They enable to distinguish the wounds, entailed by sharp objects, from wounds, drifted by blunt objects whether shot from fire-arms. But for these signs it is impossible to define appearance of sharp object.
Typical morphological appearances of wounds caused by sharp objects:
● Definite shape: fissure-like, star-like
● There margins are regular, without tears, bruises and abrasions
Regular margins of the wound
● pointed ends, sometimes with slight tears
● absence of connective-tissue membranes between the margins
Injuries caused by cutting instruments
The Cutting objects are characterized by blade (ribbing, in which borders, that intersect, converge under sharp corner, besides rib this is still sharpen) and also light weight (knife, razor, than, plait, piece of glass, tin, sharp edge stone, bone piece and etc.).
Damages formation Mechanism by cutting objects include pressing or impaired part of body and simultaneous object motion on his surface. If to take a sharp razor and few to press by her blade on skin in perpendicular direction, then damage will not happen. But already small motion along lengthwise to landmark will bring on skin cut – will grow up sword-cut. So, in forming mechanism of sword-cut major sense has a blade sliding attached to small pressure. At the same timed, by what pressure and by what longer blade extent, that most and more deep arise wounds.
From action of cutting object can arise and scratches flesh linear skin damages in appearance of her incisions. The Cutting objects can separate parts of body (concha, nose tip, sexual member, finger and etc.) in dependence on implement peculiarities and his application.
Bone by cutting objects, as a rule, do not impair. Can cut, for example, the cartilages are larynx, trachea, ribs, intervertebral discs, on bone – to remain incisions whether incisions periosteum. If in wound depth or for her motion meet bone whether cartilages (larynges, front spine surface ), then in tracks obligatorily inquire into amount of incisions on them. This will lend a hand acknowledges to know, how much implement onces went deep into cloths.
We can diagnose action of cutting objects for such specific (whether group) wounds signs:
● their shape are C-like, S-like, Z-like
Some shapes of incisions
and attached to summary edges linear (in tie with what has only length), and their clear spaces in appearance of overturned triangle. Typical wounds gaping due to skin contractility whether cut muscular fibres;
● the wounds ends have an incision (gradual wound depth underestimation bullock of her centre to the last from boundary paths own skin and epidermis) and (whether) incision (flesh epidermis damage of linear form);
● dominance of wound length over her depth and width. However oeck wound from cutting object can have a considerable depth;
● typical strong bleeding, because cut of the vessels, and do not rive, and that’s why do not fall;
● they heal over mostly by first intention and omit the thin linear scars.
As a rule, the wounds from cutting objects localize on open parts of body: on front surface of the neck, on face, in elbow bends, on forearms and brushes.
For deduction about area of motion of cutting object adopt to attention greater wound depth in her beginning and greater amount of flesh incisions in her end. Also at the beginning and in the middle cut transversal disposed hair over wound cuts, in that time as over final part of hair wound inundates whole.
Attached to presence of two sword-cuts, that cutting, asking after sequence of their drawing can be cleared up лри rapprochement of edges of these wounds. In such once a first wound will be break off, and the next one – staircase, that bound with abbreviation, divergence of edges.
Injuries caused by chopping objects
The Hewing implements characterize by considerable weight, act from sweep and with force go down on injury object perpendicularly whether sloping to surface: mattock, chopper, , spade, sabre and etc.
By reason of action of hewing objects are generated the wounds, which differ by considerable size and depth, to them inherent signs, typical for wounds from sharp objects. By trauma Peculiarity by hewing objects is damage of being subject bone. If under damaged soft cloths not about bone, then such advices can be confused with wounds from other sharp objects, specifically – from cutting.
Among damages by hewing objects in judicially-medical practice more often meet the damages, that drift by different axe. In ordered to deduce correcting expert in damages researches cases, to have about it conceptions.
Axe – this is a special implement, appointed for felling. There are different kinds of axes: for wood, meat, ice, for combat, huntering etc. Their ordinary weight is near 1400-
Morphological characteristics of such wounds depend on that, which part of it blade collided with body. Several variants of its action are happened .
Different variants of chopped wounds formation
By Peers variant is into body (head) deepened only middle part, blades. In that case a wound will be screw-type, attached to summary edges – linear, by length from 3-4 sm, to 8-10 sm, liquid more, with all properties of sharp object. Both. it ends sharp, but plumb, swift, will not be the incisions whether incisions. Can grow up a short epidermo– pressing in one whether both ends of wound.
Second variant is into body (head) steeped a sock or heel. Under this is generated oblong, wound with all action properties of sharp object. One end it according with blade action, will be sharp with plumb walls, and contrary – bifurcated for counting of two short slights tear, which form from sock wedge ribs action whether heel. Attached of such wound it has Y-shaped form.
Third variant is into body (head) deepened all blade or even axe wedge. In that case arises big (by length 10-
Classic chopped wound
deep, wound with typical action properties of sharp object. But both equestrian it will be stupid, attached to confronted edges in both ends one can be expressed on two short (0,3-
Sometimes attached to one blow by axe arises two wounds, parted by allotment of skin. This is observed then, when blows falls down on salient and falling back parts of body (on lime-tree in allotment of optic pit, on breasts in ribs allotment and intercostal interval): in places of osseous appearances are generated the wounds, in falling back places – a skin remains whole.
As a rule, each wound by axe forwards to safety violations of being subject bone. Damage of head bone by hewing objects have its peculiarities. If blade whether linen into bone, it operates as wedge, separate by her its cheeks into sides. In dependence axe immersion depth bullock into bone contradistinguish the, kirve, cuttings.
A cut characterizes by violation of safety of external osseous plate and adjoining to it thin spongy matter. A Kirve is more deep damage, which not seize of all thicknesses: bone. Cutting is damage of all thickness bone with formation oblong, fracture. A cut is full part disseverance of bone whether body (А.І.Muhanov, 1988).
Attached to a little blows by axe on head sometimes one can be set a sequence of their drawing. After formation of wound the it edges something go away. If wound happening bullock of second blow, aslope crosses first, then attached to information of edges first advice has appearance of bee-line, and other – zigzag form. The Cracks, which happened attached to second blow, do not cross the cracks, that appeared attached to first blow.
The Blows by axe on finitenesses ordinary forward to fingers disseverances all brush; the tubular forearm bone whether shin can be quite hacked. On them also one can be found the grind from blade action.
From woodchopper action, corner of blade of which not lustily sharp (sometimes even few rounded), can arise the wounds, from stupid objects and by rib, because them edges are fleeced with effusions of blood, in ends are observed the separate connecting-tissue membranes. Finding such wound on man body we must diagnosed as such, that grew up from action of stupid object with rib. This, however, will not conflict with that it was drifted, by stupid woodchopper blade or other axe.
Chopped wound can have a place only and other cases. For example, attached to blow by axe under sharp corner to body in pieces wound on one her edge, specifically – on lower pieces, can grow up fleecing from action of stupid part of axe – her cheek, to which a skin presses under wedge dip time into body. To Clamber up the edges of chopped wound are able by rough surfaces of linen attached to immersion into body of all axe wedge, which considerably moves apart the contrary wound edges. But such cases meet thinly and compose, , exclusion from regulations.
Axe whether other hewing object ordinary employ for murder and dismemberment of troupe of hammered in man.
Injuries caused by stab objects
The Prickly objects characterize by light weight, elongated by Norm and presence of sharp end. Damage by prickly objects meet more frequent damages by cutting whether hewing objects. A Distinctive wounds vainglories peculiarity is the small external wound dimensions and considerable their depth, has a place considerable wound depth dominance over dimensions of scin hole. This makes their little loud and lustily dangerous for life..
Deep penetration composes main unsafety of chipped wounds. Internal organs, specifically heart, lungs, liver, stomach, bowels lightly reachable even for short blades, because are found on depth 2,5-4 sm from skin surface and not protected by continuous bone. The Ribs for prickly object usually do not be monkey-chatter, that is why such implements lightly pass into intercostal intervals, and than whether dagger can even cut the ribs, specially it front end or his cartilage.
Typical stab wound
Attached to damages by prickly objects ordinary meet the considerable internal bleeding into cavities pleural and abdominal, into cardiac bag, that is why a long narrow channel and small hole in skin can interfere with effusion of blood outside.
From action of prickly objects are generated the wounds, sometimes – scratches (for example, by needle end, nail, blades, edge ), and attached to blow into head whether breasts can arise the hole fractures of flat bone (skull, breast bone, shoulder blades). Localization of chipped wounds is prettily typical: more frequent they meet on breasts, back and stomach, more liquid – on head, neck whether finitenesses.
A fracture Form from prickly objects ordinary reproduces transversal crossing of operating implement. Bone with fractures, called by prickly objects, attached to necropsy withdraval and was kept in quality of clothe proofs or to hand investigation down. That namely bears upon cases, when in wound find the objects, which stick in bone.
Such classification of stab objects is used in modern forensic medicine very often (according to A.I.Muhanov, 1964). So, we distinguish such stab objects:
stab objects without edges (nail)
stab objects with edges (screw);
stab objects with double-bladed flat (nife).
A. There are such stab objects without edges: a needle, awl, spoke, tenon, round nail, stylet, rapier, dart and etc., which have on transversal cut a round or oval form. They operate on cloths by its end, by reason of what is generated a point-wound. In dependence on implement diameter the wounds frequently are and considerably most, but they thinly are more then 0,5-1sm. A Lateral surface of such objects, advancing into depth, separete the tissue structures, squeezing them on neighbourhood.. Torn shallow vessels lightly trombs and bleeding frequently is insignificant.
If transversal object diameter small (needle, awl, spoke, tenon, dart), then hole is so the little, that can remain imperceptible, specially in secretive body allotments. If prickly withoutribs object has a greater diameter is 5-
An example of stab objects without edges
About that the prickly objects without ribs surface in the main separate, and do not impair the soft cloths, testifies a following example.
The Wounds from prickly objects without ribs surface are by its longer dimensions always disposed in-parallel to motion elastic retractive skin fibres – to Langer lines.
Langer lines (Lines on honour of german anatomist, which in 1861 y. in detail inquired into elastic buff properties ) – this round whether ribbone, straight whether sinuous fibres of connecting skin cloth. If into some place number grow, then they unite between oneself by branches iet appearance, which lightly stretch in area of fibres, and then acquires again primary appearance. Namely this is conditioned skin elasticity. Microscopic (on cuts, parallel to skin surface on the strength of all wound) in such wounds find the connecting-tissue of fibres in their edges, and also fibres vainglories breaks – into one whether both ends wounds. This is a lustily foam morphological sign, because sometimes only attached to histological research works well wound to deferentiate and so-and-so right to set the peculiarities of traumatizing implement.
In flat bone the prickly objects without ribs surface can form the hole fractures, which for its properties identical to gunshot, specially in skull vault bone. Attached to action of prickly objects more large internal osseous plate underlie skull.vault, on hard cerebral envelope, and attached to immediate stereomicroscopy in nudes spongy matter find the shallow osseous pieces. Attached to gunshot damages large pieces absent (they lustily crumble up and drop in by bullet into wound channel).
B. The stab objects with edges are a bayonet, sharpened three- whether tetrahedral saw, stylet such, screwdriver, , other objects with costal surface. A Body of such objects is grubbed out in pyramid appearance with sharp end. They can have 3, 4, 8, 6 and more ribs. A Transversal them cut has appearance of triangle, quadrangle, square, heel- whether hexagon. Damage for counting of ribs (and not borders)action, and by what ribs less, that them corners more sharp and that greater traumatizing action they celebrate on cloths.
From action of prickly object with three ribs arise the wounds radiant for form shallow, because from each ribbing is generated on one slight tear. In most cases they do not compose no difficulties for diagnistics.
Object Bullock with four ribs form wounds of two appearances or this fourradial wound, each ray of which arises from action of separate ribbing, or oval wound, on other edges of which symmetric disposed on one small slight tear. This depends on blowing place in damages and Langer lines disposition peculiarities. Attached to action of flat four ribs object (for example, screwdriver with unrounded ribs) the wounds can have oval form with two short slights tear in both their ends. Amount of ribs in object determine for number of slights tear in wound.
A Prickly object with five ribs inundates the shallow fiveradial wounds. Rays from them short, no more 2-
If acted prickly object from hexagonal ribs then in typical cases arise small oval wounds, disposed by its longer dimensions in-parallel to Langer lines. However on edges of such wounds can be found on two superficial slights tear whether pressure disposed one to second. The wounds Ends accord with two ribs of prickly object, on two slights tear on edges – to accordingly four ribs. Such wounds properties are conditioned that ribs in prickly object with six ribs stupid, and not each from them not always can bring on skin break.
In prickly objects with greater amount of ribs the borders converge under lustily stupid (more 120°) corner, a transversal them cut comes around circle, that’s why wounds from them oval, disposed in-parallel to Langer lines. These wounds by almost nothing do not differ from wounds, formed by objects without ribs surface.
C. The stab objects with double-bladed flat are such objects, which have flat by wedge and handhold. If in blade one edge sharpened, and contrary – in appearance of П–identical formation, then object is prickle and back. To them belong the different knives:, hunter, kitchen, composes-ache, both blades edges are sharpened, then prickly object with two blades.. Among prickly objects in judicially-medical practice most frequent damage cause by namely such objects. Going deep plumb into man body, is counted an implement whether arm do not slit (move apart) a cloth, and cut them. A Cut always makes a blade whether blades, and an edge personates auxiliary, as if indicates, paves the way.
The Small wounds from double-edged prickly objects remind of wounds from prickly objects without tribs surface. Help in diferential diagnostics wounds (from objects action without ribs wound surface 0,5-1sm into length)size, disposition of them on attitude to Langer lines (a little wounds from blade, that are found alongside, dispose independently to area of connecting-tissue skin fibers ) lines and. microscope stove research of space cuts. Attached to taking out blade of prickly object, with one whether two by blades from wound, bringing back it in wound whether impellent sacrifices arise additional cut is one or several. It is able sequential of basic cut, but usually bears off from it under some corner and lightly recognizes.
Ordinary the wounds by prickly objects with one whether two blades drift with pressure on. blade. This more frequent takes place blade grubbing out time from body. In that case is observed expressed prickly-cutting object.action, which. Characterizes by combination of prickly and cutting action of blade and blade. Are generated authentic stab– sword-cuts: one end them sharp, rounded, П-.whether М–identical, like is intent on body, and contrary являє by oneself one of ends of sword-cut, which gets across into incision whether incision, or and that and other together. So, stab– sword-cuts arise from action of prickly objects with one whether two, by blades.
Morphological characteristics of self-made wounds
Ordinary law enforcement authorities whether law-court inquire, and judicially-medical examination can define by own whether outsider hand the caused damages attached to application of sharp objects. Settlement of this question redounds to outcome to set, was. in concrete case murder whether suicide. Damage, drifted to myself to oneself by own hand, not obligatorily presents by suicide. It may be and accidental.
Attached to damages by cutting objects on action of own hand (with view members mutilation of, assault simulation, suicide) indicate such trauma peculiarities whether circumstances:
● typical wounds localization on front body surface, reachable for own hand: oeck, on front breasts (in heart allotment )surface, on stomach, on front forearms surfaces, radiocarpal and elbow jont.
● their multiplicity, paralel and surface. (
● sometimes winding of thin handhold of dangerous razor by rag piece, other analogic object with view of better ficsation of blade into hand and brush defense from trauma;
● relatively palmar brush surface clean from blood, which held cutting object (razor).
● for wounds from outsider (stranger) hands typical:
● transversal are disposed the fingers wounds and (whether) palms attached to self-defence, when that, who defends, grabs a knife blade whether dagger and attack with view of to unscrew his blow, wounds on brushes rear, on. to back forearms surface, shoulders also arising attached to attempt. To Be on the defensive;
● localization of one whether a little considerable wounds on any body allotment, but overwhelmingly oeck, face, hands.
Damage by hewing objects often drift by outsider (stranger) hand with view murder of, and dispose they, as a rule, on head. This one whether several big, oval wounds with some properties and bone cuttings with formation of numerous pieces. Under them – damage of cerebrum and his envelopes of different degree of expressing.
Damage by axe, drifted by own hand, have some morphological peculiarities, which usually enable to solve a given question. For action own hands typical:
● multiplicity and damages surface. Such combination lustily original in tie with impossibility to drift to myself to oneself biffs on head. By Own hand to do a humeral sweep by axe and to strike oneself on head it is impossible, that’s why blows insignificant and done they only from hand whether ulnaris sweep. Namely multiplicity as if compensates surface, reflecting endeavor striking to drift to oneself the mortal damages. Amount of separate wounds, that meet in parallels instance, big – from a little ten to hundred and even more. Damage of soft cloths always more calculation, than kirve whether in bone, because some from blows cut only a skin;
● one direction and damages localization in most accessible places. The Veins and osseous kirve whether cuts are directed at the front back almost in-parallel one one and disposed in allotments frontal and parietal near sagittal suture. This is accounted for by that a more frequent axe is found in front of face and the blows drift by the medium of both hands by hand whether ulnaris sweeps;
● some regulation of hewing implement under blows time. Majority of blows attached to attempt to finish a life drifts by axe. Less of damages arises from action of middle part of blade and the hardly ever blows by own hand do not drift by axe sock. By reason of it majority of damages on skin and in bone have form of grubbed out triangles (П-identical front end and sharp – back). П–identical forehand of these damages always more deep;
● lack of damages of head-dress. Suicidal, as governed, head a head in front of blowing on it in blows. If damage found and on head-dress, then this typically for hand action of outsider person (І.В.Скопін, 1960);
● absence signs of struggle and self-defence, typical for suicides. Impossibly to oneself to imagine a case, that man, to which blow in any amount of surface head damages by axe, does not accomplish attached to seventh support to attacked. Resistance whether even head regulation change will give rise to loss by damages of their properties (parallel, localization, so. on). Also ought also in the nature of things to appear wrestling signs and self-defence of different characteristics;
● founding on corpse other damages, entailed by other method or that also have properties, typical for action of own hand.
In cases of self-injury whether intentional mutilation of members by axe more often chop off the hands fingers whether legs.
Forensic examination of injuries and in cases of violent death.
Vehicular trauma.
The situation on Ukrainian roads recently has got extraordinary sharpness. If, beginning from 1985, every year happened about 40 th. of vehicle accidents and traumatized 40-42 th. persons, then in 1990 it was registered 51 th. of traffic accidents, by reason of which almost 10 th. men died and 53 thousands were wounded. For period of 1991-1995 on Ukrainian highways 220 th. of road accidents were registered. At that 40 th. men was killed and almost 236 th. of road motion participants got different traumas. Level of transport traumatism in our country yearly increases on 8-10 %. Only from motor-car transport in
About severity of road traumatism testifies the fact, that although among all kinds of traumatism it takes only 7 %, among traumas with mortal end it increases to 32,5 %. Transport trauma is divided in generally into follow groups:
The most safe is a railway transport, but people die here, too. For example, for the period of 1980-1988 years on railways of post-USSR countries in passenger trains accidents yearly died nearly 46 men, not taking into account amount of railway traumas from knocking down, crossing by train on stations, stages, crossroads, etc. In 1988 on railways 6537 men hit under trains, 3669 from them died. Correlation of died to traumatized at railway trauma is 1:2, for its consequences railway trauma is considerably more terrible, than motor-car one. In not sober state were 25 % of all perished. Train, which runs with speed of
In Ternopil region from railway trauma yearly perish nearly 8-12 men, from motorcycle one – 5-10 men, from cartage –3-5 men.
The transport (motor-car, motorcycle, railway, cartage and other) trauma is not only accidents or violence of traffic rules. In practice rarely, but happen suicide cases and even murder by means of transport facilities.
Any transport accident is subjected to investigation, especially in cases, when due to it people die or become cripple. Article 215 of UCC provides punishment for breaking of safety and transport exploitation rules by persons, which drive carrier: at infliction to victim light or of middle severity corporal damages – imprisonment up to 3 years, or correctional works up to two years, or fine; at causing heavy corporal damages or victim’s death – imprisonment up to 10 years; at death of several persons – imprisonment from 3 to 15 years. In all cases – with deprivation of right to drive a carrier up to 3-5 years or without it.
Investigation of transport accidents with human victims ordinary is complicated and difficult, that is explained by their sudden beginning and swiftness. By this reason, attention of witnesses (if they are) is fixed chiefly on results, and not on that, who, what and how has done. Frequently road accident takes place in conditions of witnessless. That’s why for last years the circle of questions, which are for solving by forensic-medical examination at investigation of transport accident, has considerably broadened, and the demands to it rise with each year.
Vehicle accident is an aggregate of mechanical action on parts of man body of a carrier, that moves, and damages formed by it, which caused health discord or death.
A kind of trauma is an aggregate of mechanical influence on man body and damages formed in it by reason of some action of a carrier, that moves.
The kinds of motor-car trauma will be: from action of external parts of car – knocking down, (blow by prominent parts), crossing, dragging, combination of two or three kinds; from action of inner parts – trauma of persons, that ride on front seat of a car or in truck cab, trauma of persons driving on back sit of a car, trauma in persons riding in lorry basket.
Types of motorcycle trauma: collisions with other kinds of transport, falls from motor-cycle, that rides, collisions with immovable barrier, knocking down a pedestrian, combined and non-typical kinds.
Types of railway trauma: knocking down – blow by prominent parts), crossing, dragging, compression of a body by parts of mechanism linking carriages, combinations of knocking down and crossing, crossing with dragging – attached to trauma from external parts of a train, damages inside engine or carriage – at trauma inside a train.
A mechanism of trauma is some sequence of mechanical action of transport vehicle on man body, of methods of its shift under influence of such action and phenomena appearing in body bringing to formation of damages. For example, trauma mechanism at knocking down by a car, as a rule, consists of blow external parts of a car, that moves, or of fall on it, blow with the road or some objects on it in fall moment after knocking away by car, friction at surface of road at further body sliding on it.
One should mark, that mechanism of damages formation at separate kinds of motor-car trauma is different. To motor-car trauma such four basic mechanisms of damages formation are peculiar:
1.damage by reason of blow by parts of a car, at parts of a car, at soil or a road, that was already mentioned before;
2.damage by reason of general concussion of a body, called by one of blows, listed in paragraph 1;
3.damage from squeezing of body between car wheel and a road, between parts of a car and other immovable objects, or between parts of car and other carrier;
4.damage by reason of body friction by car, by road attached to its dragging by parts of a car or attached to sliding of a body by soil.
Knocking down is an aggregate of mechanical action on man body and damages formed in it by reason of blow by external parts of moving carrier.
Crossing over is an aggregate of mechanical action on a body and damages formed in it by reason of rolling wheel or caterpillar track of a carrier over the body.
Dragging is an aggregate of mechanical action on a body and damages formed in it by reason of dragging a man by moving transport vehicle.
Falling from truck basket or train, and also falling out of a car are not considered as one of kinds of transport trauma, because they do not subject to its determination and are kinds of road accident. During this damages are generated by falling from height attached to outstanding circumstances.
Depending on peculiarities of transport vehicle, trauma from its action is subdivided on trauma by ground transport (tyre, rail, caterpillar, cartage), air and water carriage. Into its turn in trauma by tyre transport distinguish a tractor, trolleybus, motorcycle, motor-car traumas. Rail trauma subdivides on railway, tramway, and in conditions of some production – also on a tub one. Most frequently happen the motor-car, motorcycle and railway traumas.
Trauma — a bodily harm with or without structural alterations resulting from interaction with physicochemical agents, imparting energy to tissues.
It can cause morphologically apparent damage (wound) or produce physiological imbalance (e.g. reflex cardiac arrest by neural stimulation) and secondary effects (e.g. thrombosis, infection, obstruction of tubular organs)
Transportation trauma — an association of mechanical actions of a moving vehicle to human body with the injuries that formed resulting in health disorder or death. video
Classification of transportation trauma — depends on the kind of a vehicle:
Classification of vehicular trauma (according to А.I.Мukhanov, Ternopil, 1974, 2008)
· Knock down
· Run over a body
· Dragging
· Association of them
II. Inside of the vehicle (inflicted by internal parts of a carrier):
· Driver’s trauma
· Passenger’s trauma
Forensic diagnostics of vehicular trauma. The diagnostics of a vehicular trauma is based on two main expert features (signs): specific injuries and typical injuries.
Specific injuries are termed also as patterned injuries. They may correspond to some parts of a moving vehicle involved into the traffic accident and their shape, size, outline, surface of the bottom commonly represent a definite traumatic part or detail of the car: patterned abrasion of car light in pedestrian trauma, imprint of a steering wheel or dash board on the skin in driver’s trauma, tyre mark on outer clothes in run over a body etc. If such injuries are found on the body they directly suggest vehicular trauma therefore they are so important for forensic diagnostics and must be firstly detected by the expert.
Unfortunately, specific injuries can be rarely revealed (nearly 7-8 % among all cases of transportation trauma). Thus, the basic forensic medical diagnostics is connected with typical signs of motor-vehicle trauma. The origin of trauma from car action, that moves, as also its kinds, are diagnosed basing on specific and typical signs.
The specific (or quite typical, straight, indisputable, absolutely sufficient) signs are the contact traces, which appear from immediate action of concrete part of transport vehicle and are characterized by some form, size or relief, that coincide with operating part, which into trauma moment collided with clothes or man body. These damages give an opportunity to confront them with object, by which they are made, for establishment of their likeness. Damages’ specificity is in that they appear and meet only attached to specified, given kind of motor-car trauma and is not observed at other ones, as motor-car, as other traumas. They form not frequently – into 5-10% of cases.
Specific signs of motor-car trauma: impress of headlight, over- or underlighter, radiator grate, hook, bolt head, wheel protector, part of steering wheel, parts of turning glass, details of device panel etc. They can be in appearance of originally form dirtying or in appearance of damages (grazes, bruises).
An imprint of hexagonal bolt on the skin of dead pedestrian
Typical (conditionally or in common sufficient) signs are such signs, which meet most frequently at certain kinds of motor-car trauma, but can happen also during action of other means or at other circumstances.
The typical signs ourselves do not yet indicate on a car or its parts action on victim, do not indicate on a transport trauma kind, however in their aggregate, and also at accident circumstances evidence, become sufficient for basing of expert deductions.
Totally, the following appearences are typical in road traffic accidents (RTA):
multiplicity, magnitude and damages’ variety;
deformation of body parts (head, chest, pelvis allotment, extremities);
impresses on skin of clothes folds relief;
cracks, tears or skin ruptures from its excessive tension;
damages spreading on two and more body allotments;
contamination and damages presence on two contrary body (clothes) surfaces;
disparity of skin, bones and internal organs damages localization;
stratification of damaged soft tissues;
traces of friction (dragging) of obtuse objects by clothes, body, or clothes or body by obtuse objects;
contamination of clothes or body by engine oil;
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stratification or dip from damage of paint or car glass particles, and so on.
Ukrainian expert practice meets as a rule the followings:
Typical injuries of vehicular trauma:
· Numerous and various injuries
· Deformation of the body
· Imprints of the clothes on the skin
· Ruptures of the skin
· Location of the injuries in more than 2 anatomic regions
· Presence of the injuries on the opposite sides of the body
· Great abrasions on the skin
· Internal injuries are more severe than external
Knock down by a car. It is a knock down of a pedestrian by external parts of a moving motor-car. In other words it is termed as pedestrian trauma in forensic medicine. A moving car strikes a victim as a rule due to the follow phases:
1. previous impact.
2. falling down on a car.
3. falling down on the ground.
4. friction against the road.
The first phase is characterized by formation of contact (patterned) injuries at the site of collision of the body with definite (as a rule — prominent) parts of a moving car. They may be rings of headlights, radiator, bumper, fender etc. The most prominent part of a vehicle is a bumper which blows a victim at first. As a result of this bumper fractures of lower extremities are formed.
Bumper-injury
They are usually fractures of the tibia and fibula or femur. The localization of a fracture depends on the height of the bumper (if a lorry — great, a light motor vehicle — less) and height of the victim (child or adult). It is very important for an expert to measure the distance between the heel of the victim and the level of his fracture. Generally a bumper fracture is spiral shaped. In the latter, the base of the triangular fragment of the bone indicates the site of an impact and the apex points the direction in which the vehicle was moving. In foreign forensic literature patterned and bumper injuries are often termed as primary impact injuries. During another phases (2nd-4th) secondary injuries are formed. Due to a contact with a windshield, severe head, spinal injuries, fractures of ribs, lacerations may occur. Injuries due to a contact with the ground include abrasions, lacerations and bruises over the face, hands, hips, legs or bony prominences. They are often marked with traces of dirt. Huge internal injuries (ruptures and fragmentations of inner organs) may be inflicted too.
Thus, a mechanism of a knock down is rather difficult and generally in medico-legal practice may be confirmed by the following expert features: specificе — an imprint over the clothes or skin any external details of the vehicle; typical — bumper injuries, locality of the injuries, morphological appearances of general contusion of the body, sliding marks over the body, friction marks on soles of victim’s boots. The typical signs acquire a special value at combination of them (not less 3-4) and with specific signs.
The Indistinctive or simulating traffic trauma signs are all the rest damages, which are not included in signs, described above. They don’t have an independent diagnostic sense, because on them it is impossible to confirm a fact of motor-car trauma or its kind.
Knocking down is factually man blow by prominent parts of a car, that moves. In majority of cases it is made by parts of front car surface – by bumper, revetment of radiator, headlight, bonnet, fender (up to 60% of cases), considerably more rare – by lateral machinery surface: by lateral fender side, footboard, by basket (by 30% of cases) and rarely – by back surface: by back bumper, basket and etc. (10 %).
The trauma mechanism at blow (knocking down) by car can include three or four phases:
§ 1. previous impact
§ 2. falling down to a car
§ 3. falling down to the ground
§ 4. sliding on the road
the first phase characterizes by pedestrian blow by some part of a car, that moves, the second – by pedestrian fall on car, third – by throwing him off on the ground and the fourth – by sliding of body along road surface. In each from these phases certain damages can appear.
At frontal blow by anterior car surface the pedestrian is accorded the trauma by most prominent part of a car – bumper, by headlight etc. In blow moment takes place a transmission of kinetic energy from car to victim. In man appear contact damages from blow on level of that parts of a car, by which they are stroked (in allotment of lower extremities at car blow, and in allotment of lower extremities, pelvis or chest – at strike by a truck). Simultaneously with it appear damage from general shock of the body, caused by this blow. On car are generated dents and friction traces.
Very specific for blow by parts of a car are damages, caused by headlight and its rim. They dispose in thighs allotment, lower part of a body and display in appearance of grazes, bruises, considerable in size, fully or partially repeating a form of this part of a car. They can have round or arched form.
To specific at knocking down by a car refer also damages from blow by revetment of radiator, hook, bolt head and other parts having an original form.
At frontal knocking down damage most frequently is made by a bumper. Externally these damages display in appearance of grazes, bruises and more rarely by wounds. They localize in top third of a calf or on different levels of one or both thighs and not always accord for size with bumper width. A blow by car bumper (buffer) frequently causes so-called “bumper-fracture” of lower extremities bones in places named above.
From blow by bonnet or car fender appear big bruises without typical form, with localization in allotment of top third of thighs, pelvis or buttocks.
At blow by corner of lorry, bus, trolleybus, on body, except big bruises, sometimes appear contact damages in appearance of grazes and contuse wounds, caused by bolts, hooks connecting basket sides, and other parts, which have a typical form. All these damages are specific.
In second, third and fourth phases from car knocking on pedestrian specific damages of soft tissues don’t happen. Typical for final phase of this trauma are damages of skin – grases from dragging, which happen during body sliding along soil surface. They are parallel scratches of gutter form, red in colour, with exfoliated epidermis, more deep and wide in place of their beginning, and superficial and more narrow near their end.
The rest damages, which happen during this kind of trauma, can be either typical, or indistinctive. Damages of internal organs, that frequently form during body blow by a car, that moves, more frequent manifest themselves by result of general body shock and more rare by straight blow by parts of a car.
These are all the knocking down signs with dominance of blow by a car. Still pick out knocking down with pressing (A.I.Mukhanov, 1974), for which typical are chest and (or) abdomen squeezing signs (“ekchimotic mask”, carmine lungs oedema), folds or clothes contours impresses on skin, symmetric ribs fractures, pelvis bones, various damages of internal organs, absence of sliding traces on footwear, closes and skin.
Run over a body. It is such type of a vehicular trauma when injuries are formed when a moving wheel runs over a victim’s body. As a separate type of a traffic trauma it takes place seldom in medico-legal practice and it usually is associated with a knock down. In other words it follows after a knock down, when a pedestrian is firstly knocked and then he is run over by a car. The mechanism of this trauma consists of 3 main factors: 1.impact with a moving wheel; 2. squeezing of the body between a wheel and road; 3.friction against the ground and wheel. The severity of this trauma depends upon the part of the body run-over, the weight of the car and its speed.
Forensic diagnostics in cases of run-over must be directed for the detection of specific and typical signs of this trauma. So, there is only one specific expert sign of run-over — tyre marks upon the skin and clothes.
Tire mark on the clothes
When a limb is run over by the wheel of a motor-vehicle the skin and subcutaneous fat may be dragged away from the deeper muscles with or without any break in the continuity of the skin. This is known as degloving — one of the most important of typical sign of run-over. The followings should be assumed by the expert as typical medico-legal signs of run-over a body by a car:
· Imprints of the clothes on the skin
· Deformation of limbs
· Bilateral (symmetric) fractures of the ribs and pelvis
· Displacement of abdominal viscera to the chest or vice versa
· Avulsion, crushing or extrusion of internal organs
· Longitudinal parallel tears of the skin above the bony prominences (wings of ilium)
· Ecchymoses in the eyes.
As usual these typical morphological features may be easiely found during medico-legal autopsy and help an expert exactly define this type of a motor-vehicle trauma.
There is definite specific sign of run over a body. First of all injuries are formed due to the action of moving tires of a car. According to this tire mark at the upper clothes or on the skin of pedestrian are found. This sign may be as numerous abrasions, bruises etc. and suggests exactly than run over a body took place.
So, tire mark is a main forensic appearance of run over a body.
They can be positive, that reflect a texture of prominent parts of protector, and negative, that reflect texture of its depressions. Positive impresses on skin can be in appearance of different substances stratification – dust, dirt. paint, or in appearance of damages – grazes or bruises. They accord for size with protector texture elements size, which have left them.
Typical trauma signs, that indicate on crossing:
deformation (flatting) of body parts;
impresses of relief or clothes folds on body;
clothes ruptures, cracks, tears or skin ruptures from their excessive tension;
striped scratch or the bruises – the pressure stripes from wheels;
spacious pocket-like exfoliation of skin, filled by blood;
plural two-sided symmetric fractures of ribs, scapula, pelvis bones (of Malgen type );
numerous fractures of vertebra spines;
disparity of external damages to internal;
tearing off, smashing of internal organs, diaphragm ruptures, shifts of chest, stomach, cerebrum organs from one cavity into other, or squeezing them out from cavities;
chest and (or) stomach squeezing signs, other.
Dragging. It refers to the type of a vehicular trauma when a victim is caught by a moving motor-vehicle and is dragged against the ground «road rash». The distance of such dragging may be so long (tens and hundreds of meters). Because of this a victim slides against the road and multiple elongated abrasions and grazes are formed. They are accompanied by numerous linear parallel scratches. These are termed in forensic practice as «drag marks». All these injuries are observed upon the huge surface of the skin. «Sawing» of the soft tissues may be revealed too.
Association refers to a combination of some kinds of motor-vehicle trauma: knock down with run-over, run-over together with dragging etc.
Driver’s or passenger trauma. When a vehicle is involved in a road accident a driver or passenger may sustain serious multiple injuries. Such a type of an automobile trauma is known in forensic medicine as driver’s or passenger trauma. Most of vehicular accidents are frontal (collision with other vehicle or fixed object) and occur in about 80 % of all vehicular accidents. Here, we can distinguish typical mechanism of a trauma. The occupants of the car continue to move forward, even though the vehicle stops. The driver first slides forward so that his legs strike the lower surface of a dash-board and his abdomen or lower chest strikes the edge of the steering wheel.
An imprint of dash-board on the skin
Then the body flexes across the steering wheel and begins to rise. The head goes forward and there is severe flexion of cervical and thoracic spines. When the car suddenly stops due to the collision, the head comes back with great force and great extension of the spine is formed (whip-like fracture). The head strikes the windscreen, upper windscreen rim or the side pillar (on the left for the driver, on the right in case of front seat passenger or when right traffic order). The windscreen may break and the person may be ejected trough the broken glass on the bonnet or to the ground. The front seat passenger sustains the same impact except injuries from the steering wheel. The back seat passenger impacts on the back of the front seat.
Forensic diagnostics of the trauma inside the vehicle. As stated above, the occupants of the motor-vehicle sustain definite injuries — both specific and typical. Any patterned injuries (bruises, abrasions, lacerations) due to the impact on the internal automobile details: dash-board, windscreen rim, side pillar etc. Steering-wheel injuries (an imprint abrasions of the steering-wheel on the skin, fractures of sternal portions of the ribs, fractures of the sternum) are specific only for driver’s trauma. All these injuries are specific for the trauma inside a vehicle.
The following medico-legal features are typical for a driver’s or passenger trauma:
· Location on the anterior parts of the body
· Cervical fractures of the spinal cord
· Fractures of the facial bones
· Fractures of the legs and pelvis due to the pressure against the foot pedals (in driver’s trauma)
· Fractures of the tibia, fibula, hips and knees due to impact against the dashboard
· Numerous small cuts caused by broken windscreen on the back surfaces of the hands or on the face (driver’s trauma only). Note, tiny pieces of windscreen glass may be seen inside these injuries.
· Ruptures of m. recti of the abdomen.
· Ruptures, fragmentations, displacements of internal organs (liver, spleen, kidneys, diaphragm, aorta etc.)
Basilar skull fractures, closed head injuries, dislocation of the atlanto-axial joint.
antemortem fractures of the ribs in driver’s trauma
Forensic-medical expert has to take into account that injuries that are seen on the left side of the body refer to drivers trauma and the location of the injuries on the right side usually refers to passenger trauma.
Railway trauma. It signifies an association of mechanical actions of the moving train to human body together with the injuries that formed resulting in health disorder or death.
Classification of railway trauma (according to А.I.Мukhanov, Ternopil, 2008)
· Knock down
· Run over a body
· Dragging
· Squeezing between the vehicle projections
II. Inside of the train (by internal parts of a train):
Forensic diagnostics of railway trauma. Railway injuries may be suicidal or accidental. A simple decapitation is commonly an indication of a suicide and rarely of an accident. Traumatic amputation of the extremities or trunk is typically for accidents or rarely of a suicidal person. The nature of the injuries will depend upon the position of the victim when struck.
In general the diagnostics of railway trauma is based on two main expert features (signs): specific injuries and typical injuries.
Specific railway injuries are the following: Squeezing bands — the imprints of the rolling wheel on the skin like striated abrasions near 8-14 sm. in width. Dirt bands — are located on the skin, along the periphery of the squeezing bands. They are smeared with lubricant and soil. Dissection of the body. It depends on which part of the decedent was located on the rails or which part of the body was run over. Separation of limbs. Wedge-shaped defect of the tissues in the area of railway wheel rolling. Striated ruptures of the skin in the zone of separation. Imprints of any prominent details of the train etc.
Typical railway injuries:
· Injuries are multiple, extensive and various
· Deformation of the body and limbs
· Signs of general concussion of the body
· Tires of the skin
· Superficial smearing of clothes and skin with ballast bed particles
· Presence of the injuries on the opposite sides of the body
· Dragging marks upon the skin
· Internal injuries are more severe than external
Therefore multiple severe injuries formed simultaneously in many regions of the body commonly characterize this type of transportation trauma.
Railway trauma is characterized by numerous considerable injuries, which localize simultaneously in several, and sometimes in all parts of the body. Except the classification mentioned above in railway trauma distinguish (S.S.Muntyan, 1977): blow by railway transport, that moves; crossing by wheels, falling from the train; squeezing of body by parts of transport; trauma inside carriages at railway catastrophe; combined kinds.
The following specific signs of railway trauma are met in forensic medical practice:
separation of the body;
stripes if abrasion from pressure by wheel surface, that rolls,
or ribbons of abrasion on the edge of dismembered body part;
original scratch of certain form from primary “pinch ” by a wheel;
angled skin parts (in appearance of big saw indents) on dismemberment edge;
wedge-shaped tissues’ defect in crossing zone;
“plicated smoothing” of clothes material with metallic brilliance;
rubbed allotments and stripes of side-slip;
impresses of certain parts of the train, in that number of buffer plates or the mechanism, that connects carriages;
exfoliating of skin on considerable region and repeated skin pieces kink;
polishes in bones
and some other.
For railway traumas typical are:
multiplicity, magnitude and variety of damages;
deformation of body parts;
cracks, tears and skin ruptures from its excessive tension;
numerous traces of body dragging and sliding by the road surface;
ballast dusty of clothes and body;
damage of calves by locomotive, that reminds bumper-damage at autotrauma;
striped clothes ruptures, which localize on trouser-legs or sleeves.
Damages from knocking down by a train form from double action: blow by parts of transport, that runs, and blow by body during following fall. It is not easy to distinguish them at railway trauma. Dominating damage from blow by a train are the wounds, which have considerably grazed edges, are more clearly expressed comparing with those, that appear in the moment of secondary body blow. On body side, which has experienced a primary blow, bone fractures and damages of internal organs are more expressed, considerably more massive damages on contrary side, lungs are torn by ribs parts, effusions of blood into soft tissues is more intensive. Sometimes a blow leaves impresses of some prominent part of a vehicle.
Crossing by train wheels is diagnosed for specific signs: body is divided on parts or dismemberment of body parts; stripes of grazing or pressure or ribbons of grazing on dismembered parts of a body; scratch from primary “ pinch” by wheel of typical longitudinality, Т-like form or inflammation mark form; angular big skin pieces on dismemberment edge; wedge-shaped defect of tissues in wheel action zone; “plicated smoothing of clothes” and its contamination by black substance with metallic brilliance; rubbing allotments and stripes of side-slip; filings in bones from long friction of their lateral surface by wheel or rail during considerable body dislocation; are well expressed traces of body dragging along the railway etc.
Stripe of grazing or pressure, i.e. impress on wheel surface on skin, appear by reason of scratching of skin epidermis, that has a great resistance to pressure comparing with soft tissues, , organs or bones situated under it, which appear to be mashed or crushed. At once after trauma stripe (or pressure ribbon on the edge of divided part of body) is soft, pink or pale-red. Afterwards it gets dry and to the end of the first day acquires crimson or livery colour and parchment density. The pressure stripe width on average composes 10-
The scratch from primary “pinch” by the wheel is situated before grazing stripe beginning and indicates on place of primary train wheels contact with victim’s body and on his position on rails in accident moment.
The wedge-shaped tissue defect appear in all cases of train wheels crossing over the victim’s body. Morphologically it is full destruction of soft tissues and bones in crossing place. In tie with more intensive body traumatizing by wheel this defect in profile has a wedge form, always facing its wide side to the wheels. Wedge-shaped defect appears both on extremities and on the body. It is diagnosed by comparison of dismembered parts of the body. During this wound parts of body surface, which were found in dismemberment moment on the rail, compare, and facing the wheel are found on distance 5-
Rubbing allotments or stripes of side-slip form near stripes or pressure ribbons by reason of fleecing of skin by lateral wheels’ surfaces. Unlike stripes or pressure ribbons, rubbing allotments have uneven edges and unequal width, which vacillates from 2-
Polishes in bones are generated rarely, in that cases, when body during crossing by wheels of railway transport dismembers on several parts. Some part of dismembered body can be grasped by train details, pressed to lateral wheel surface, that twists, or to rail head and to drag in such state for a long time. During long friction soft tissues are fully erased, and in bone appear polished area with longitudinal lines. On their surface frequently remain parts of black grease. Polished allotments from friction by lateral surface of wheel dispose, as a rule, on arc. Polishes in bones are the specific sign of railway trauma.
To setting the fact of crossing by train wheels contribute row of typical signs, namely: massiveness and variety of damages; deformation of body parts; cracks and. skin ruptures from its excessive tension; breaks of hypodermic base from within, of aponeuroses, fascia, muscles; diaphragm ruptures, neck skin, perineum and other parts and pressing out damaged internal organs through them; ballast dusty of clothes and damages by sand or slag particles etc.
Ballast dustiness of clothes, body, wound surfaces – the considerable contamination of them by ballast, i.e. by particles of road-metal, gravel, sand, which fill up railway groundwork and on which lay the sleepers. At railway trauma because of big train speed or displacement of body by ballast groundwork layer, parts of ballast get on clothes, into their folds, to pocket, between clothes layers, into natural concavities and body holes, and also into damages. Presence of ballast parts on body, closes and in damages – almost permanent sign of railway trauma, in that number – of crossing over.
Crossing by railway transport frequently is attended with dragging of the victim along road groundwork. During this from blows by sleepers, rails and friction by ballast large grazes, numerous scratches, wounds, fractures of some bones are generated, which are dusted with considerable amount of grease and particles of way ballast layer. Long dragging can be attended with displacement, turning inside out and even full tearing away of clothes from the body.
At body squeezing between carriages on chest and back skin usually form the impresses of buffer plates contours or locking parts of autoconnector in appearance of grazes or bruises. Appear damages, typical for strong squeezing of a body. Other types of railway trauma, as a rule, do not have typical peculiarities.
Trauma by cartage, caterpillar, air and water-carriage meets more rare, its properties and possibilities of forensic-medical diagnostics are contained in special manuals, monographs or scientific articles.
Motorcycle injuries. Motorcycles are very unsafe because they have less stability than four wheeled vehicles, their speed is high, their size is relatively small and a motorcyclist does not have any protection from an accident. When an accident happens, the injuries are often severe as there is very little crushable material to absorb the impact. A driver and passengers are thrown off usually. All types of injuries may be present. Primary injuries are mostly open fractures of the tibia and fibula. Secondary injuries are mostly fractures of the skull and cervical spine, as well as contusions of the brain.
Motor-cycle trauma is an independent and separate group of vehicle trauma. It happens most frequently by reason of motor-cycle collision with other transport vehicle (43-49 %), in result of fall from motor-cycle (23-37 %) and knocking down a pedestrian by motor-cycle (12-13 %). Considerably more rare happen: motor-cycle collision with immovable barrier (8-10 %), crossing through the victim by wheels and non-typical cases.
At bike trauma meet specific damages, incident to only it – concrete traces, which reproduce the motor-cycle details: traces-impresses, contamination traces, metallization traces, which coincide with a form, size or texture of certain part of a vehicle.
For motor-cycle trauma typical are combinations of severe cranial-cerebral trauma with damages (fractures) of extremities, damage from general shock of body etc. Knocking down the pedestrian by motor-cycle frequently is followed by damages of lower extremities – fractures of one or both bones of the calf, and also by cranial trauma by reason of secondary blow at pedestrian fall, sometimes – by one-sided ribs’ fractures.
During motor-cycle collision with other transport vehicle mortal damages usually receive bikers, trauma in which is combined. Typical is combination of cranial-cerebral trauma with damage of extremities, chest and organs of abdominal cavity. Isolated cranial-cerebral trauma meets rarely. The last is most typical for falling down from motor-cycle: numerous face scratches and bruises, wounds with exfoliating of edges from bones, pressed bone fractures of anterior skull surface with distribution of cracks on skull base, blood effusions under envelopes, nto ventricles and brain substance. Also combined trauma of chest and stomach takes place.
Making forensic-medical examination in cases of motor-cycle trauma, one should have in mind also typical data. At motor-cycle trauma the biker frequently dies, at it many of light damages are observed, trauma from primary blow more frequently localizes in lower and middle third of calves, it can never be situated above pelvic allotment, does not cause exfoliating of skin, damage of head and skeleton, always one-sided, do not meet signs of body squeezing video .
A fracture of the skull with the associated brain injury is the most common cause of death but multiple injuries usually lead to fatal motorcycle accidents.
Bicycle trauma. Because of the speed of this vehicle is lower, usual fatal injuries can be inflicted due to another motor vehicle striking the rider. Primary impact injuries of the legs with secondary injuries to the head, shoulder and trunk are commonly seen. The majority of fatal bicycle accidents are collisions between a bike and a motor vehicle. Among all these kinds of trauma head injuries, trunk injuries and contusions, distortions and fractures of the lower part of tibia and fibula may be mainly revealed.
A motor-car trauma. This kind of transport trauma are occurred the most often. Particularly 80 % of all forensic investigation in cases of transport trauma is connected with road accident. among all cases of is classified differently. For practical aims most useful is dividing them into 2 groups damage by external parts (outside a car) and by inner parts of a car (inside it), their kinds are listed above. So, modern forensic medicine distinguishes follow kinds of vehicular (motor-car ) trauma (according to classification of ass.-prof. A.I. Muhanov., 1974)
Forensic autopsy in cases of vehicular trauma
Proceeding to necropsy of a man, which probably has died from vehicle (motor-car, motorcycle, railway or other) trauma, for the first turn one should view clothes and footwear with aim of search on them specific and typical traces of transport parts action, and also driveway coverage, in that number by means of magnifier or stereomicroscope (operation microscope).
Describing damages, it is necessary to determine their localization, direction concerning body axis, form, size, colour, edges properties, walls, ends and bottom, state of surrounding tissues, correlation of damages, and also contamination inside them, presence of foreign inclusions and particles (last withdraw for giving to investigator). It is important to measure the distance from damages to sole surfaces with taking into account sole thickness and footwear heel, because these data will help to specify victim’s and transport method interposition in accident moment.
To obligatory photographing according to rules of scientific photography subject specific and typical damages or contamination of skin, internal organs and bones. If it is impossible to do, one should copy them on polyethylene film by ball-pen.
It is important to find hidden damages, for example, effusions of blood into deep back muscles, extremities, etc. For this is expediently to employ a circulation cut at the front on clavicles level, behind – in suprascapular region with following skin cut along middle line at the front and behind, continuing the cuts on upper and lower extremities.
During internal examination it is necessary to have a careful view of organs and tissues in places of their withdrawal with view of topography comparison of external and internal damages, finding signs of general body shock and displacement of damaged organs. During this obligatorily examine all internal organs, ribs, scapulas, spine, pelvis bone, tubular bones, joints and bones of facial skeleton. After examination of damaged bone in the corpse it is desirable to withdraw them fully or their fragments for laboratory examination with the aim of fractures mechanism determination and specification of vehicle trauma mechanism. The fractures depict on contour schemes, photograph.
To speak about man’s health state, during necropsy is obligatorily needed to exclude, and at presence – to estimate organic diseases, which could be a cause of traffic accident (illness of cardiac-vascular system, eyesight organs, hearing etc). Obligatory is determination of presence and quantitative contents of alcohol in organism of dead man. For this for forensic-chemical examination take from the corpse and direct into laboratory 20 ml of blood (from large veins or sines of dura mater ), and urine in glassware, filled to the cork.
For direction into forensic-medical laboratory obligatorily subject also blood (not less then 10 ml) for determination of its antigen belonging in cases of external damages or bleeding presence, hair from 5 head allotments for comparative examination, about what a suitable record at the back of protocol part of the act (expert conclusions) is made. Other types of laboratory research foresee depending on tasks of concrete examination. Employ histological method for determination of lifetime and remoteness of damages, and also for specification of pathological changes in organs or for exclusion of them; stereomicroscopy – for finding damages’ details, signs of tissues’ destruction, small foreign objects; rontgenography – for search of foreign objects, bone fractures, etc.
FIREARM TRAUMA:FORENSIC EXAMINATION AND DIAGNOSTICS.
Bullet track in internal organs and bonesFir
FIRE INJURIES
Firearm appeared in the middle of XIV century and since that times it is widely used in fighting actions.
As the incidents with using firearms last during very short time, in most cases it is almost impossible to reproduce real events without specialist help, even in the cases with witness presence. That is why the destination of forensic examination of bullet wounds presents is obligatory part of investigation and the results of expert researches frequently are very important and decisive proof sources during such investigations.
Firearms
Firearm is the weapon that uses kinetic gunpowder combustion energy to throw out the projectile from the trunk. It is subdivided on artillery and rifle. A rifle firearm can be grouped as individual (or hand) and collective one. The injuries which are caused by explosion of different explosive substances or devices, belongs to explosive trauma.
Shortly, a firearm is an instrument with which is possible to prople a projectile (missile) by the expansive force of gases generated as result of combustion of the propellant (powder) in a closed space.
In ordered to do examination of firearm trauma correctly, a specialist in branch of forensic medicine must be well acquainted with wound ballistics, with arm and ammunitions, that are most often to be found in expert practice.
A rifled firearm is small-bore (5-
Ammunitions
A Bullet is a small projectile in view of steel or leaden ingot of oblong form with sharp or blunt end for firing from rifles, sub-machine-guns, pistols, guns, machine-guns. They are different: long, intermediate and short; sharp and blunt ended. They are subdivided on usual and special. In shot-guns the leaden and combined bullets are used, such as Jakan, Brenneke, Mayer and others. Bullets from different riflearm differ in mass, for example, the weight of bullet for Makarov’s pistol is 6,lg, and to submachine gun Kalashnikov and SCS carbine is
Structure of different cartridges
The defeating projectile in hunting cartridges most often is a pellets , that actually are leaden small balls. They can be made by factorial and home-made method. In hunter cartridge the cardboard wad is placed right on gunpowder , then felt wad, to create the best hermetic attach to combustion of gunpowder. Now wad-containers for pellets from polyethylene are used. Any wad, found in the place of event or in wound, is valuable material evidence, that’s why it must be withdraw and given to investigator.
Shot and its mechanism
A Shot is a gunpowder flash in cartridge, that is found in cartridge-chamber of firearms, and throw out of bullet (pellets) from trunk under pressure of powder gases, formed by this flash.
While living a barrel, a bullet revolves around its axis with speed of 2-3 thousand of turnovers per second, that is necessary for its stability in flight and increase of the flight distance. This motion is conditioned by presence on internal surface of trunk of riflearm spiral slices, which actually are narrow ditches.
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The mechanism of formation of bullet wound is very complicated. A projectile (bullet, fraction) has enormous kinetic energy, which transfers to organism tissue while entering. Effect of firearm projectile on tissues depends on the number of factors: from bullet or pellets mass, their speed and physical state of tissues. Piercing bullet ability is conditioned by its ” living force” at the moment of wounding. While increasing the weight of bullet twice the kinetic energy increases twice too. At the same time the increasing of its speeds twice calls 4 time augmentation of energy. If the mass is constant, a bullet that has greater speed will have greater energy.
Entrance and exit holes
A bullet or pellets provokes mostly mechanical traumatic action. A Typical bullet wound consists of entrance wound, wound channel and exit wound in the condition of through wound. There are also blind, tangent and direct bullet wounds. While examination of bullet injuries always arises question about direction of shot, about cosituation of injured and shooting, about direction of wound channel in man body etc.
The entrance bullet wound (or entrance hole) is small, 6-
It can be of round, or oval form, if bullet enters the body by its main part perpendicularly to skin surface or under insignificant corner to it. A Round form of entrance hole is explained by the fact that a bullet while entering the body with its front end, makes the hole, that has a form almost similar to cross-section of round bullet. An oval form of entrance of bullet wound can be conditioned by immersion of bullet into skin by lateral surface, uneven skin contraction, that displays stronger on the direction of elastic fibers, skin fold wound, change of body position, associated with displacement of tissues in wound surrounding areas, etc. Other forms of entrance hole meet rarely.
Having considerable kinetic energy, a bullet beats out skin surrounding areas, that are situated in front of it. As the result a cloth defect appears. A cloth defect is one of reliable signs of firearms entrance hole. This sign explained that according to entrance hole the part of skin is absent, and because of it the ends of wound can not be quite together, a wound gapes. The most frequent cloth defect has a round or oval form. It sizes are lesser then bullet diameter, which is explained by skin tensility during passing bulled through it. A cloth defect determines by comparison of wound ends: if they do not become together or become together for skin tension with formation of folds, it means the defect is present.
Formation of the tissue defect
The other sign, which is very important in recognizing of entrance hole, is a presence of edging abrasion around it. A contusion edge or edging abrasion surrounds entrance hole by narrow edge of 1-
Defect of the tissue and abraded ring in entry fire wound
The greater kinetic energy of the bullet is, the greater tissue defect and the more narrow edging abrasion are. A width of edging abrasion depends also on size and form of bullet. An edging abrasion is not always well expressed, specially on torn big entrance holes.
Two entry holes with rings of mud
M. 1. Raisky offered to distinguish also drying edging, which appears on corpse in 12-24 hours after death by reason of posthumous skin drying out in the area of its abrasion on wound edge according damaged epidermis. A drying edging looks like a little wider (0,5–
While penetration of the bullet into body as it rubs the edges of entrance hole, and different parts that are always present on the surface of the bullet stay there. As the result of this there is a presence of darkly-gray or black narrow edge on the edge of entrance hole, which is called ring of mud (see picture upper).
This is another sign of entrance bullet wound. If the shot is through the clothing the rubbing edge on wounds of skin is frequently absent, because major part of substances, that were on bullet, remains on edges of clothing.
As a rule, a rubbing edge coincides with edging abrasion, covering it.
A rubbing edge enables not only to distinguish an entrance hole from exit, but sometimes can be the base for answering the question about succession of shot.
In projection of edge of mud in the entrance bullet wound, there disposes one more ring – metallization edge which is formed by procrastination of shallow metals lobules on wound or damage of tissues edge. The edge of entrance bullet wound in typical cases is toothed or smooth, that depends on size of kinetic energy of bullet: the greater bullet energy is, the more equal edges are. Is also depends on a bullet end form. It is a fact, that the sharp bullets form more equal edge, and rounded or blunted is toothed.
In majority of cases entrance hole lesser then exit. But this conformity to natural laws has and exclusion, about which it was already remembered. An entrance hole can be identical with exit (for example, when they are disposed close to one another) or even bigger (while point-blank shooting, sometimes – from shooting from small distance because of gases action etc.).
The entrance hole is also testified by a presence of black-gray soot, not burnt particles of dust and other components of shot around damaged clothes or skin.
An Exit wound (exit hole) is a wound, through which a firearm products (bullet, it parts, pellets) leave a body. It is formed in other way than entrance one. A Bullet, passing over tissues, approaches skin from within and stretches it out in front of oneself in cone appearance. Overcoming tissues resistance, a bullet loses part of kinetic energy. An epidermis on protrusion top cracks in radial directions and a skin burst. That is why the form of exit hole is most often radiant, crack-viewed or indeterminate, that depends on wound localization and skin elasticity in wound allotment.
The Contrary wound edges well compare without pulling the skin, exactly adjoin one to another and close down hole. So, an exit bullet wound does not have a tissue defect, and if it presents, it is considerably smaller from defect in entrance wound.
Edges of exit hole are toothed, torn with slight tears that go away to the sides. The attendant shot factors such as soot, not burnt particles of dust and etc.
An Exit hole does not have the rubbing, metallization or abrasion edges. Scratching of epidermis sometimes is observed by exit hole, when skin allotment was pressed to rock-bottom – to chair back, to wooden wall, sex, sword-belt strap etc.
In majority of cases exit hole is greater then entrance. A difference in size is because in the moment of entrance into the body the bullet flies correctly, and in the moment of going out of the body it can turn a little, to become deformed, to take some parts of bones. There can be other causes, which have been already mentioned.
You must remember that if there is one entrance wound, there can be several exit holes. A bullet sometimes is deformed in the body and subdivided on separate parts, and each of them goes independently, forming the separate holes. In such cases it is possible to find pieces of bullet in tissues, especially during Rh– research.
It happens, that typical signs of entrance or exit holes are absent or unclearly expressed. Different factors are important for correct hole recognizing. Difficulties arise not only from shooting from big distance, but also from close distance. This happens in cases, when a shot is done through the clothes, and the clothing is absent or became unsuitable for research (inundated by blood).
Additional shot factors and their action
During the shot not only the bullet or pellets fly out of barrel but also products of explosive gunpowder decomposition and other components, which leave the traces on cloth or man body and even can damage them. These are so called as additional or concomitant factors of shot. They are: post of constricted air that appears in front of bullet, powder gases, flame, soot, not burnt gunpowder corns, pieces of metal, drops of gun oil, if arm was smeared.
Additional factors of a shot
(hot gases, a flame, a smoke, burnt grains of powder)
They come out of a rifled gun only on insignificant distance. Exposure of additional shot factors on man’s cloth or body or traces of their action tells that this is bullet wound, about presence of entrance hole and enables to set shot distance.
At the moment of shot gases, flame and bullet go into the hole formed by post of constricted air. That’s why a tissue defect, that usually is caused by bullet, can be absent and not expressed.
There is mechanical and chemical action of powder gases (or hot gases). Mechanical action appears in damages of clothes, skin, fat base, muscles, internal organs, destruction of bone, specially flat ones, exfoliating of skin, that depends on gase pressure and distance of a shot (5-
Mechanical and chemical action of the shot gases
The chemical action of powder gases is, that at an shot closely, particulate and from a very close range oxide of Carbon, which one places in gases (10-40 %), very fast incorporates with a hemoglobin of a blood of an injured site (segment). Owing to it around of an input fire foramen there is a bright red color of a blood and muscles. Thermal operating of gases of smokeless powder is possible, but optional.
Forensic appearances of contact shot
The flame of a shot is one of the additional factors, which one accompanies with an shot. At an outrigger boom the black powder from a bore will reject oddments of combustion of a powder charge and capsule structure – fire flame, which one consists of the incandescent firm and kindled infrequent parts. The black powder derivates a flame and weight of incandescent firm parts, which one invoke (produce) ignition of clothes (clothing), scorching of tissues, skin burns, scorching of a hair. At an outrigger boom by smokeless powder the flame can sometimes call minor scorching of tissues of woolen clothes (clothing), scorch of a down hair (as acts faster in matching with a flame of black powder). The flame of an outrigger boom reaches up to 15-
Smoke black as one of the additional factors of a shot, represents small grains of a miscellaneous structure, which one are born from a bore out by powder gases. Caking around of an input fire foramen on an interrupting in view of black –grey raid of miscellaneous intensity, they derivate a reference picture intrinsic to injuries by shot from fire-arms.
During a shot not all powder is decomposed. Some grains come out a bore after bullet and are partly burnt. Each grain can be esteemed as separate small balls, which one has large initial velocity and some alive force. It is enough of this force often to punch (knock) tissues of clothes (clothing), to go deep into a skin on definite depth are termed as burnt grains. In thin cotton tissues of clothes (clothing) grains can abandon many small-sized foramens around of central bullet wound. At increase of spacing interval of a shot not burnt grains lose energy, do not piers clothes (clothing), are not sunk in a skin, but densely stick to them. At a shot from the lubricated weapons from a bore take off pieces of rifle oil. They also sit on an interrupting around of entrance hole in the shape of separate splashes at shot from a distance to 40-45cm. Near an initial foramen they are absent. On clothes the tracks of gun oil are well imaged at the maiden outrigger boom from lubricated arms, end as a rule, are not located or are much more gentle expressed at the subsequent shot. The tracks of oil find with the help of special exploratory methods (in ultraviolet rays). The detection of tracks of oil enables to judge mouth, in a definite measure about a distance and sequence of shot.
Determination of shot distances
Shot Distance is a distance between the muzzle and target (or victim). To determine a correct shot distance is exceptionally important task of forensic examination in firegun accidents. This completely belongs to competence of forensic expert whether doctor.
Forensic medicine distinguishes such distances of a shot: contact, near contact, very close, close and distant.
Such dale is accounted for by peculiarities of forensic practice and shot peculiarities from these distances. The Shot fired from all those distances is characterized by some signs. Those signs are very important in forensic meaning because help to design specific investigator’s questions.
Contact shot (shot without distance) – when a shot gun is fired with the muzzle in contact with the body. Under this a bullet channel is continuation of barrel. All of shot factors (projectile, gases, flame, not burnt gunpowder pieces, soot ) come into the wound. An imprint of the muzzle (tattooing) is created. It is a specific sign of contact shot. It is a damage of the skin in scratch appearance whether bruise around entrance of bullet wound hole reproducing constructive peculiarities of the muzzle.
An imprint of the muzzle (tattooing)
The Stamp-impresses always are found in area of entrance hole and have in diameter 2-
Forensic characteristics of contact shot
So, the main forensic appearances of contact shot are:
Laceration of the surface skin
Laceration of the deeper tissues
Fragmentation of bones
Scorching of the skin and hair
Blackening around the wound
Imprint of the muzzle
Description of entrance hole attached to shot closely depends also on properties of being subject cloths and allotments тіла.в which realizable shot. Contradistinguish such variants: shot into body allotments, where under skin is disposed a bone (head); shot into breasts whether stomach, where be subject cavity; shot into body allotment, where there is a thick layer of soft cloths (buttock, thigh, shoulder) and shot into small cavity (into mouth, into anal hole, into vagina).
If the bone disposed near under skin, then attached to shot closely powder gases do not able to come in by on the morrow of bullet into small hole, because they expand at the time.. All that rises by gases and rives by reason of turning inside out of wound edges. In tie with that a wound takes radiant shape, with slights tear on edges. Attached to comparison of break edges in wound centre appears a skin defect for counting of small rounded coulisses on pieces tops, sometimes the coulisses edges are thene, by reason of what a wound centre falls back.
The hole edges and clothes for motion of bullet channel are covered by soot raid. A Considerable amount of it is found on internal wound pieces surface, on external bone surface around entrance hole, on hard cerebral envelope, deeply in wound channel, sometimes – on internal surface of hard cerebral envelope and bone by exit hole. Saturated with blood pieces, specially on beginning of wound channel, acquire a scarlet color for counting of formation carboxyhemoglobin.
Attached to shot closely into breast or stomach, powder gases, broadening an entrance hole in skin, quite penetrate into cavities, where and display its considerable destroying action. Attached to it, exclusive of general shot signs closely, entrance wound more frequent small (0,5-
If muzzle arm end is put to part of body, where is subject a thick layer of soft cloths (seats, thighs, lumbar allotment), then attached to shot closely gases penetrate into wound channel, considerably widening it. An Entrance hole can be usual, without slights tear and exfoliating of skin. But soft cloths (hypodermic base, thewses) considerably situated on considerable extent, a wound channel ordinary has expansion pairshaped with considerable effusions of blood into his wall.
Attached to shot closely into small cavity (for example, into mouth) the basic injuries form for counting of bursting gases action. Take place the typical mouth corners breaks in appearance of radial wounds, cracks, numerous breaks of mucous envelope of mouth cavity, pecies of bone fractures of jaws top and lower. In bullet going out place are the big lacerated wounds, part of brakes of skull vault bone can be absent.
Near contact shot – shot from arm, which is disposed not perpendicularly to monkey-chatter, and under some corner, when to clothes or body leans only part of muzzle cut. Such shot has the shot signs closely and shot from lustily near distance. Attached to it destroying, action celebrates not only bullet whether fraction, but gases and flame. One. part of gases with their composing elements (by soot, not burnt particles of dust, metals grains) by on the morrow of bullet penetrate from wound channel, traumatizing a clothes, soft parts whether bone, and where them can be seen attached to research. Other part of gases directs outside entrance wound, and soot, the not burnt gunpowder corns cover clothes allotment whether skin, disposed on the part of open corner in the shape to oval. A Entrance hole localizes by expertise, by oval edge.
Typical sign of near contact is arched impress muzzle of the end of arm from one wound (incomplete stamp-impress) side in scratch appearance by length 1-
On woven clothes materials by reason of shot partially closely arise the cruciform breaks of different size, breaks length bearing off from bullet hole, not identical. One whether two breaks considerably longer from the rest, they accord with open corner of leaned arm and always covered by soot raid, remainders not burnt grains.
Very close distance is such distance, attached to shot from which powder gases and flame are still capable to entail damage of clothes whether to man body. For contemporary hand rifle arm this distance compose 5-
Cross-like ruptures of the clothes due to very close shot
A Shot with very close distance are characterized by follow signs:
Entry wound is circular
Singed by flame
Surrounded by soot
Cross-like ruptures of the clothes or skin
Burning around the wound
Close or Near distance is such distance, when a target is located within the range of gunpowder action but outside the range of flame. That is why only burnt grains of gun powder and soot (blackening) are found around the wound.
Under this an entrance wound has usual description. The soot of shot settles on impediment and can be expressed on distance to
Distant shot. In distant shot there aren’t any additional effects around the entry wound.
In this case additional shot (soot, particles of dust, metal grains) factors already do not fly so far, and that’s why do not appear. Distant shot for hand rifle arm, as a rule, starts to for boundary paths
When do not find additional shot traces, then in deductions show, that shot signs from near distance not expressed. A Lack of traces of near shot not yet bears witness to that it is done not from near distance. A Shot could be realizable, for example, on the strength of clothes, which is absent, on the strength of some gasket, on the strength of doors, which held out by man body from contrary side and T.i. y such cases traces of near shot remain on cloth, to gasket whether on doors. A Entrance bullet hole under this has the peculiarities incident to it.
Entry hole in distant shot
From laid out swims out exceptionally important clothes research sense, head-dresses, footwear attached to bullet wounds. The inquiring Results into them are included into basing of expert deductions. If corpse with bullet trauma got into morgue without clothes, it isnecessary to explore it addition.
Appears, that insignificant part of soot and other shallow parts goes on with flight together with bullet in nearbullet and pustbullet to vortical spaces. Attached to bullet interaction with man body whether her clothes this mass is a party to procrastination on kneaded “soot” simulating a shot picture from near distance. Procrastinations of soot on unnear distance (to
FIREGUN INJURIES OF INTERNAL ORGANS.
SMOOTH BORED FIRE INJURIES
Wound or bullet channel is a way laid by bullet (and by also pellets whether splinter) in body. This – the injuries in cloths or organs, disposed between entrance and exit holes, or between entrance hole and bullet whether pellets (attached to blind wounds). A wound channel is continuation of entrance fire wound. It form, size and properties are determined by kinetic bullet energy and cloths resistance, that push through. In majority of cases wound channel is bee-line. The channels are through going and blind, straight and not, single and numeral, continuous and broken, in with surrounding, closed and open.
Attached to through going bullet wound or pellets quite transfix all body whether his part (head, neck, finiteness). Attached to insufficient projectile energy it remains in body cloths, sometimes under skin – blind wound. The Straight channels have appearance of bee-line. The not straight wound channels are generated, when a bullet pass over a little organs, which are able lightly change location or to change its regulation (on the strength of a little bowels loops, on the strength of different muscles groups, on the strength of breasts with damage of heart and etc.), or when bullet, coming in into body and running on its way across dense tissue (bone, cartilage), changes its primary direction by reason of ricochet. Exclusive of numerous shot, the numerous channels arise and then, when a bullet is divided into little parts and each from them forms separate motion and separate exit hole. Continuous channel can be spied on all his extent from entrance to exit hole without any breaking, not looking at that it can pass over different cloths and organs (for example, in head – on the strength of skin, bone, brain matter ). Bullet while meeting the bone can go on its surface as if surrounds part of body and proceeds from contrary side – this is a surrounding channel. Such wound can perceive for through going penetrable. Counted higher wound channels are closed. A Bullet or pellets can go on surface over bodies, forming a groove wound in skin or even to omit an oblong scratch. Such channel is called open, and wound is tangent.
The wound channel consists of: the wound channel (central his part), to it joins a slaughter zone, which in living transforms in process of time into necrosis zone, and zone of culturally-molecular shock.
According to distinctions of different cloths and organs, a bullet way has its peculiarities, on which we and will come to a stop. Passing over flat bone (skull, sternum, pelvis), a bullet forms in it a hole, which expands into bullet flight side.
Two exit holes in the skull
Around this hole ordinary one can be found radial, and sometimes – concentric cracks. A hole made a hole by bullet has appearance of truncated cone, a small base of which is found with side, from which a bullet flew, and a big base indicates on that side, where bullet started to fly. This enables to emplace bullet entrance into body and bullet going out place from it, specially in research cases of bone, when the soft cloths absent, for example, rotted (attached to troupe exhumation, attached to exposure skeleton of the body etc.).
In epiphysis of long tubular bone from bullet wound hole wound channel is formed, in that time as entrance place of its round or oval form from almost by equal edges. In dialyses of long bullet flnitenesses bone brings, as a rule, on many pieces fracture. By bullet entrance Place into tubular bone will be that hole, which few lesser, has a round whether oval form, serrulate edge and from which cracks move away overwhelmingly radial. Hereupon on lateral bone surfaces exude the large splinters reminding of butterfly wings.
Bullet injuries of sufficiently dense internal organs (livers, kidneys, spleens, pancreas) in the main of the same type. A Bullet beats out part of tissue, forms a rectilinear wide wound channel, bringing on breaks of his walls with vast zone of separated and cloths rolled by blood. For holes properties ordinary one can be defined area of bullet flight.
Properties of bullet wounds of hollow organs depend on degree of their filling. While damage of empty stomach, vesica urinary or bowels bullet holes in them usually roundshaped with numerous short breaks serous and mucous envelopes (for exclusion of shot closely). Being borrowed into hollow organ, stowed with liquid or halfliquid by contents, a bullet creates a effect of explossion.
Smooth bored fire injuries
In forensic damage practice by fraction attached to shot from hunter arm meet prettily frequently. In majority of cases they lustily typical and do not bring on difficulties in their diagnostics. A pellets together with wad and other components of equipment of hunter cartridge under shot time takes off from gun trunk as compact projectile. Then under windage influence and other factors this projectile starts gradually to disintegrate into sides and to stretch into length, forming a cone with top, turn to trunk hole. On distance
Smooth bored fire injuries of the chest
Action of additional shot factors displays on considerably greater distances, than attached to threaded arm, chiefly for counting of greater gunpowder mass. Powder soot can be expressed on distance up to
Smooth bored shot (hunting rifle, 2-
Pellets during the flight disperses. And this fact has laws (specifically, by what further it flys, all the more so scatters and being borrowed into aim, occupies greater allotment). To define shot distance in such cases can still in linear measures.
Contact shot with hunting rifle – imprint of the muzzle
Wound caused by unmarried shot
Unmarried is called shot from firearm by cartridge, into which there is not projectile (bullet whether fraction). Shot by unmarried cartridge closely, partially closely or from lustily near distance can bring on terrible and even mortal injuries. Destruction cause in the main powder gases .
Form of entrance holes attached to shot into allotments, where near is subject bone, from distance 1-2 sm radiant from 3-10 by rays by length 0,5-4 sm. Shot by unmarried cartridge closely into head, the breasts whether stomach causes penetrable wounds. In skull bone mark numerous fractures with many pieces with defect to 2,4 x2,6 sm. In cerebrum form the deep wound channels by diameter 3-5 sm. On the chest are generated the ribs fractures with many pieces, in lungs – are observed the blind injuries by diameter of 5-7 sm with numerous parenchimal slights tear.
The certain methods in investigation of firearm injuries
The positive and valuable results give such laboratory research methods, as immediate stereomicroscopy, photographing, in that number in infra-red rays, research of some objects by the medium of infra-red transformer, histological, X-ray examination, electrocardiographical, chemical methods, spectral analysis etc.
Very close shot (infra-red light)
