Retrospective Autopsy based analysis of nature and prevalence of Fatal Injuries in Lahore

Abstract

Bacckground: Autopsy is a medical examination conducted after death to ascertain the cause of death. For Clinical autopsies, the permission of the next of kin is required. In suspicious deaths, an autopsy is a legal requirement and is performed by the coroner ormedico-legal surgeon.
 Methodology: Retrospective analysis of records of forensic medicine from January 1st, 2016 to December 31st, 2016, was done to observe fatal injuries causing death, their nature, and prevalence. The deaths, in which cause of death was Fatal Injury were included in our study. These cases were analyzed with respect to age, gender, cause and manner of death, number and location of injuries and the approximate time lag between injury and death. All data were entered into SPSS.
 Results: A total of 785 autopsies were conducted at the Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, King Edward Medical University, Lahore in 2016, 42.8% fulfilled our inclusion criteria and were included in the study. Cases of firearm injuries were maximum constituting 46.4%, followed by RTA (13.7%) and blunt trauma (11.9%). Most victims were in the age bracket of 21-40 (55.1%) with a male to female ratio of 4.09:1. Head was the predominant site involved.
 Conclusion: Fatal injury deaths are mostly due to firearm injuries. Victims are more commonly males and majority cases die immediately after sustaining the injury. Manner of death is predominantly homicidal. Efforts should be made to prevent and properly manage fatal injuries.