Forensic Autopsy Series Research Articles

Forensic autopsy-confirmed COVID-19-induced out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

BackgroundIn the setting of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, data from autopsy in subjects who died at home during lockdown are scarce. We here report the first forensic autopsy series of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).MethodsBetween March and April 2020, four COVID-19-related OHCA were autopsied at the Institute of Legal Medicine of the metropolitan area of Lyon (France) according safe recommended procedures.ResultsFour Caucasian individuals (3 men/1 woman; age: 56.8±2.1 years, body mass index: 29.5±7.4 kg/m2), presenting symptomatic COVID-19 were autopsied. Autopsies of 3 individuals reported natural death by acute respiratory failure implicating SARS-CoV-2 with typical COVID-19 pulmonary aspect of gross findings and pulmonary microscopy findings, i.e., diffusely congestive edematous lungs with peripheral thrombi and diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) at different stages of inflammatory reaction. For one individual, autopsy concluded of violent death due to suicidal acute alcohol intoxication in a patient that could no longer endure COVID-19 lockdown. No significant lesions were found in the heart.ConclusionsWe report here OHCAs of non-cardiac cause directly implicating COVID-19 at various stages of SARS-CoV-2-related DAD. Thus, autopsy remain of interest during this epidemic, both legally and medically to better understand the pathogenic processes of this emerging infectious disease.

Die unklare Leberraumforderung

Unknown liver lesions represent a common clinical challenge, for example in the context of routine ultrasound examinations of primary care physicians. There are different data on the prevalence of primary liver lesions in the literature. As such, a forensic autopsy series described focal liver lesions in about 50 % of all examined men between 35 and 69 years of age with an increasing incidence for older people. In the diagnostic work-up of unclear liver lesions, a careful distinction between lesions that occur in asymptomatic and healthy individuals and are benign in over 95 % of cases, and lesion found in patients with pre-existing malignant, inflammatory or cirrhotic disease must be made. The main goal in the diagnosis of unclear liver lesions is to prove the benignity of the lesion and to exclude a malignant cause as reliably as possible. In case of benign lesions, an attempt should be made to achieve an exact classification. The most common benign focal liver lesions include liver cysts, focal fatty liver deposition or sparing, haemangiomas, focal calcifications, focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH), nodular regenerative hyperplasia, biliary hamartomas (von-Meyenburg complexes) and hepatocellular adenomas. Abscesses, inflammatory infiltrations or pseudotumors as well as sites of extramedullary haematopoiesis are observed much less frequently. Among the most frequent malignant focal liver lesions are metastases of other tumor entities such as colorectal cancer or pancreatic adenocarcinoma as well as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and cholangiocellular carcinoma (CCA). Other entities such as hepatic lymphomas or mesenchymal malignant neoplasia are extremely rare.

Tau and Amyloid-β Pathology in Japanese Forensic Autopsy Series Under 40 Years of Age: Prevalence and Association with APOE Genotype and Suicide Risk.

Aggregation of abnormal phosphorylated tau in brain stem areas may be a possible early pathological manifestation of Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study aimed to explore the prevalence of cases with AD-related pathology in subjects <40 years of age and to explore the association of such pathology, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and APOE genotype. We conducted brain immunohistochemistry for 189 cases <40 years of age (mean±standard deviation age 25.3±13.1 years). Tau positive cases were then assessed for the distribution of tau pathology in the locus ceruleus (LC), raphe nucleus (RN), and entorhinal cortex (ErC), and the distinction between neuronal threads and cellular inclusions. Apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype was also examined. Tau pathology was detected in 135 cases (71.4%; 13-39 years; only LC, 23 cases; only RN, 4 cases; only ErC, 35 cases; LC+RN, 3 cases; LC+ErC, 57 cases; all three regions, 10 cases). The prevalence of thread pathology was higher than that of cellular inclusions. Significantly higher prevalence of the APOEɛ2 allele were found in 10-39 years of age natural death cases (p < 0.05). Amyloid-β deposition was found in only 7 cases, along with a significantly high frequency of the ɛ4 allele (p < 0.05). While a past history of psychiatric disease was a significant risk factor for suicide, AD-related pathology was not associated with suicide. Both the brain stem and entorhinal cortex was the initial site of tau pathology in many younger subjects. AD-related pathology may not be a significant accelerating factor for suicide in younger subjects.

Unknown liver lesions

Unknown liver lesions represent a common clinical challenge, for example in the context of routine ultrasound examinations of primary care physicians. There are different data on the prevalence of primary liver lesions in the literature. As such, a forensic autopsy series described focal liver lesions in about 50 % of all examined men between 35 and 69 years of age with an increasing incidence for older people. In the diagnostic work-up of unclear liver lesions, a careful distinction between lesions that occur in asymptomatic and healthy individuals and are benign in over 95 % of cases, and lesion found in patients with pre-existing malignant, inflammatory or cirrhotic disease must be made. The main goal in the diagnosis of unclear liver lesions is to prove the benignity of the lesion and to exclude a malignant cause as reliably as possible. In case of benign lesions, an attempt should be made to achieve an exact classification. The most common benign focal liver lesions include liver cysts, focal fatty liver deposition or sparing, haemangiomas, focal calcifications, focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH), nodular regenerative hyperplasia, biliary hamartomas (von-Meyenburg complexes) and hepatocellular adenomas. Abscesses, inflammatory infiltrations or pseudotumors as well as sites of extramedullary haematopoiesis are observed much less frequently. Among the most frequent malignant focal liver lesions are metastases of other tumor entities such as colorectal cancer or pancreatic adenocarcinoma as well as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and cholangiocellular carcinoma (CCA). Other entities such as hepatic lymphomas or mesenchymal malignant neoplasia are extremely rare.

Incipient progressive supranuclear palsy is more common than expected and may comprise clinicopathological subtypes: a forensic autopsy series.

We investigated 998 serial Japanese forensic autopsy cases (0-101years old, mean age 61.7±21.9), with no case selection, using immunohistochemistry to detect cases with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). Twenty-nine cases (mean age 82.3±7.2years, 11 males, 18 females) fulfilled the National Institute of Neuronal Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)-PSP pathological criteria (2.9% of all cases, 4.6% of cases over 60). All had neuronal and glial inclusions in the basal ganglia and brainstem. However, 13 cases had low tau pathology and were categorized as atypical PSP. In addition to PSP pathology, multiple types of astrocytic inclusions and comorbid proteinopathies, particularly a high prevalence of argyrophilic grain disease, were found. All cases had not been diagnosed with PSP and had preserved daily functioning prior to death. However, 14 (48.3%), 11 (37.9%), and 16 (55.2%) cases showed signs of dementia, depressive state, and gait disturbance, respectively. Sixteen accidental death cases (55.2%), including from falls and getting lost, and 11 suicide cases (37.9%) appear to have a relationship with incipient PSP pathology. Cluster analysis using the distribution and amount of 4-repeat-tau pathology classified the cases into three subgroups: Group 1 (10 cases) had typical PSP pathology and seven cases (70.0%) had dementia as the most frequent symptom; Group 2 (7 cases) had significantly higher frequency of gait disorder (6 cases, 85.7%), and less neocortical tau pathology than Group 1; Group 3 (12 cases) had relatively mild PSP pathology and high argyrophilic grain burdens. Granular-shaped astrocytes were the dominant astrocytic inclusion in all cases. We conclude that in forensic cases incipient PSP occurs with a higher prevalence than expected. If these findings can be extrapolated to other population-based cohorts, PSP may be more common than previously thought.

The Role of Forensic Autopsies in Diagnosis of Cancer

Background: Death from cancer is mostly considered as natural deaths. The role of cancer on the cause of death in forensic cases like sudden deaths, negligence or malpractice claims are being investigated. In a small amount of forensic cases, cancer is found incidentally at the autopsy. The aim of this study was to reveal characteristics of the cases in which cancer was diagnosed and types of malignancies in medicolegal autopsies. In addition, the role of forensic autopsies in determining oncological diseases was discussed.Methods: Forensic autopsies were performed in the Morgue Department of Forensic Medicine Council in İzmir for eight years were retrospectively reviewed. Cases that postmortem histopathological examination performed and malignant tumors diagnosed were included in the study. Data about age, sex, location of tumors, immediate causes of death and the potential relation between tumors and the primary cause of death were investigated.Results: In eight year period (between 2001 and 2009), 3722 medicolegal autopsies were done by postmortem histopathological examination. In 86 cases such kind of tumors were observed. In seven of 86 cases the tumors were determined as benign and excluded from the study. The remaining 79 cases with malignant tumors included in the study, 63 (79.7%) were male and 16 (20.3%) were female, mean age 54.96±20.35 (range: 7-88 years). The tumors were most frequently located in respiratory system (35.4%), gastrointestinal system (19%), genitourinary system (10.1%) and central nervous system (8.9%). The males most frequently had tumors in the respiratory system (42.9%) and the females in the endocrine system (25%). According to histopathological classification of the tumors, the most frequent tumors were epithelial tumors (65.8%), followed by hemopoetic (12.7%), mesenchymal (7.6%), glial (5.1%) and neuroendocrine tumors (2.5%) and timoma (1.3%). The tumors could not be histopathologically differentiated in 5.1% of the deaths. Cause of death was considered as cancer related complications in 58 cases (73.4%), other natural causes in 6 cases (7.6%) and external factors such as traumas and intoxications in 10 cases (12.7%). The cause of could not determined following complete autopsy and postmortem investigation in 5 cases (6.3%).Conclusion: Providing accurate cancer statistics by only clinical trials or medical autopsies that are diminished nowadays and clinical cancer outputs seems to be inadequate. We participated that investigating malignancies in large series of forensic autopsies would be contributed to data about public health.Keywords: cancer, medicolegal autopsy, cause of death

Prevalence of arrhythmia-associated gene mutations and risk of sudden cardiac death in the Finnish population

Background. Sudden cardiac death (SCD) remains a major cause of death in Western countries. It has a heritable component, but previous molecular studies have mainly focused on common genetic variants. We studied the prevalence, clinical phenotypes, and risk of SCD presented by ten rare mutations previously associated with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy, long QT syndrome, or catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia.Methods. The occurrence of ten arrhythmia-associated mutations was determined in four large prospective population cohorts (FINRISK 1992, 1997, 2002, and Health 2000, n = 28,465) and two series of forensic autopsies (The Helsinki Sudden Death Study and The Tampere Autopsy Study, n = 825). Follow-up data were collected from national registries.Results. The ten mutations showed a combined prevalence of 79 per 10,000 individuals in Finland, and six of them showed remarkable geographic clustering. Of a total of 715 SCD cases, seven (1.0%) carried one of the ten mutations assayed: three carried KCNH2 R176W, one KCNH2 L552S, two PKP2 Q59L, and one RYR2 R3570W.Conclusions. Arrhythmia-associated mutations are prevalent in the general Finnish population but do not seem to present a major risk factor for SCD, at least during a mean of 10-year follow-up of a random adult population sample.

Common Genetic Variants Associated with Sudden Cardiac Death: The FinSCDgen Study

BackgroundSudden cardiac death (SCD) accounts for up to half of cardiac mortality. The risk of SCD is heritable but the underlying genetic variants are largely unknown. We investigated whether common genetic variants predisposing to arrhythmia or related electrocardiographic phenotypes, including QT-interval prolongation, are associated with increased risk of SCD.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe studied the association between 28 candidate SNPs and SCD in a meta-analysis of four population cohorts (FINRISK 1992, 1997, 2002 and Health 2000, n = 27,629) and two forensic autopsy series (The Helsinki Sudden Death Study and The Tampere Autopsy Study, n = 694). We also studied the association between established cardiovascular risk factors and SCD. Causes of death were reviewed using registry-based health and autopsy data. Cox regression and logistic regression models were adjusted for age, sex, and geographic region. The total number of SCDs was 716. Two novel SNPs were associated with SCD: SCN5A rs41312391 (relative risk [RR] 1.27 per minor T allele, 95% CI 1.11–1.45, P = 3.4×10−4) and rs2200733 in 4q25 (RR 1.28 per minor T allele, 95% CI 1.11–1.48, P = 7.9×10−4). We also replicated the associations for 9p21 (rs2383207, RR 1.13 per G allele, 95% CI 1.01–1.26, P = 0.036), as well as for male sex, systolic blood pressure, diabetes, cigarette smoking, low physical activity, coronary heart disease, and digoxin use (P<0.05).Conclusions/SignificanceTwo novel genetic variants, one in the cardiac sodium channel gene SCN5A and another at 4q25 previously associated with atrial fibrillation, are associated with SCD.

Alcohol and premature death in Estonian men: a study of forensic autopsies using novel biomarkers and proxy informants

BackgroundAlcohol makes an important contribution to premature mortality in many countries in Eastern Europe, including Estonia. However, the full extent of its impact, and the mechanisms underlying it, are challenging issues to research. We describe the design and initial findings of a study aimed at investigating the association of alcohol with mortality in a large series of forensic autopsies of working-age men in Estonia.Methods1299 male deaths aged 25-54 years were subject to forensic autopsy in 2008-2009. The routine autopsy protocol was augmented by a more systematic inspection of organs, drug testing, assay of liver enzymes and novel biomarkers of alcohol consumption (EtG, EtS and PEth), together with proxy interviews with next of kin for deaths among men who lived in or close to a major town.Results595 augmented autopsies were performed. Of these, 66% were from external causes (26% suicide, 25% poisoning). 17% were attributed to circulatory system diseases and 7% to alcoholic liver disease. Blood alcohol concentrations (BAC) of ≥ 0.2 mg/g were found for 55% of deaths. Interviews were conducted with proxy informants for 61% of the subjects who had resided in towns. Of these, 28% were reported in the previous year to have been daily or almost daily drinkers and 10% had drunk non-beverage alcohols. Blood ethanol and the liver enzyme GGT were only associated with daily drinking. However, the novel biomarkers showed a more graded response with recent consumption. In contrast, the liver enzymes AST and ALT were largely uninformative because of post-mortem changes. The presence of extremely high PEth concentrations in some samples also suggested post-mortem formation.ConclusionWe have shown the feasibility of deploying an extended research protocol within the setting of routine forensic autopsies that offer scope to deepen our understanding of the alcohol-related burden of premature mortality. The most unique feature of the study is the information on a wide range of informative alcohol biomarkers, several of which have not been used previously in this sort of post-mortem research study. We have demonstrated, for the first time, the epidemiological value and validity of these novel alcohol biomarkers in post-mortem samples.

Premature cardiovascular mortality and alcohol consumption before death in Arkhangelsk, Russia: an analysis of a consecutive series of forensic autopsies

High cardiovascular diseases (CVD) mortality among the middle aged is a major cause of reduced life expectancy in Russia, especially among men. Hazardous alcohol consumption is suspected to be a powerful contributing factor. All men (1099) and women (519) aged 30-70 years who died between 1 January 2008 and 31 August 2009 from CVD in the city of Arkhangelsk, north-west Russia, were included. CVD mortality was stratified by age, gender and diagnosis. For the cases diagnosed by forensic pathologists, the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was determined. The forensic autopsy rate was 72% for men and 62% for women. Age-standardized CVD mortality rate (all age groups) in men was higher than in women. The largest male-female ratio (4.3) was observed in the age group of 50-59 years. Alcoholic and unspecified cardiomyopathies were the most dominant of CVD mortalities in women, and second in men aged <50 years; they accounted for 50 and 25% of deaths, respectively. About one-third of men and women who died from CVD aged <60 years had consumed alcohol shortly before death. This occurred most frequently among the diagnostic groups 'other acute or subacute cardiac ischaemia', 'atherosclerotic heart disease' and 'cardiomyopathies'. Alcohol was more likely to be found at autopsy in men than in women (odds ratio 1.55; 95% confidence interval 1.14-2.10). No difference was found for those who died from myocardial infarction, cerebrovascular diseases and cardiomyopathies. Of the deceased, <1% had a BAC of ≥ 4 g/l. A high proportion of subjects who died from CVD in Arkhangelsk consumed alcohol shortly before death. It was highest among males aged 50-59 years. The largest gender difference in mortality, highest absolute number of premature CVD deaths, and the highest proportion of alcohol-positive autopsies occurred among them. Since associations with alcohol consumption varied considerably between the types of CVD diagnoses, this observation should be taken into account when planning future research. Our study does not provide evidence that cardiovascular deaths are misclassified cases of acute alcohol poisoning.

Resuscitation and conjunctival petechial hemorrhages

In recent years, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) has been discussed as a cause of petechial hemorrhage in eyelids and conjunctivae, which could be of substantial significance to forensic expertises in cases of suspected strangulation. In the reported series or case observations, the combination of CPR and petechiae seemed to be sufficient to explain such a causal connection. Nearly all presented cases were victims for which the mechanisms resulting in death were themselves well-known causes explaining the development of such petechiae; and said mechanisms can frequently be observed in victims that did not receive CPR. An earlier, also retrospective, analysis of a series of forensic autopsies did not confirm CPR as a significant cause of conjunctival petechiae. Now we present the result of a prospective examination of 196 resuscitations of adult patients with separate assessment of petechiae being present even prior to resuscitation. Petechiae were present in 12 cases – but in eight of them prior to resuscitation already. Three other persons with petechiae found only after CPR were in the group of successfully resuscitated persons and exhibited petechiae hours after CPR during therapy in intensive care units – during a phase of ongoing cardiac insufficiency, which obviously caused them. The only case with petechiae observed neither immediately prior to nor after unsuccessful resuscitation, but during a follow-up examination one day later, needs to be discussed. It is not interpreted as reliable evidence for the causality of CPR though. Our interpretation of reports in literature as well as our experiences confirm the absence of actual proof of petechiae being generated by CPR and in the presence of generally significant doubts of this relation.

Columnar cell lesions, mammographic density and breast cancer risk

Mammographic density is the third largest risk factor for ductal carcinoma in-situ (DCIS) and invasive breast cancer. However, the question of whether risk-mediating precursor histological changes, such as columnar cell lesions (CCLs), can be found in dense but non-malignant breast tissues has not been systematically addressed. We hypothesized that CCLs may be related to breast composition, in particular breast density, in non-tumour containing breast tissue. We examined randomly selected tissue samples obtained by bilateral subcutaneous mastectomy from a forensic autopsy series, where tissue composition was assessed, and in which there had been no selection of subjects or histological specimens for breast disease. We reviewed H&E slides for the presence of atypical and non-atypical CCLs and correlated with histological features measured using quantitative microscopy. CCLs were seen in 40 out of 236 cases (17%). The presence of CCLs was found to be associated with several measures of breast tissue composition, including radiographic density: high Faxitron Wolfe Density (P = 0.037), high density estimated by percentage non-adipose tissue area (P = 0.037), high percentage collagen (P = 9.2E-05) and high percentage glandular area (P = 2E-05). DCIS was identified in two atypical CCL cases. The extent of CCL was not associated with any of the examined variables. Our study is the first to report a possible association between CCLs and breast tissue composition, including mammographic density. Our data suggest that prospective elucidation of the strength and nature of the clinicopathological correlation may lead to an enhanced understanding of mammographic density and evidence based management strategies.

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection as a cause of sudden, unexpected death

ABSTRACTTwo cases of sudden unexpected death due to spontaneous coronary artery dissection are reported, retrieved from a series of forensic autopsies of 3300 cases since 1997. The first case was a 52‐year‐old man who had no previous health problem but cardiomegaly and atherosclerosis in coronary arteries. The dissection was found between the intima and the media at the proximal and mid‐portion of the left anterior descending coronary artery, 6.6cm in segment. The second case was a 39‐year‐old woman who had a history of hypertension and an intrauterine device. The dissection was also found between the intima and the media of the mid‐portion of the left anterior descending coronary artery, 8.7cm in segment. There was no myocardial infarct probably due to the hyperacute nature of this coronary obstruction. No significant predispositions were noted although hypertension and the intrauterine device may have causal association. Both reported cases present previously healthy adults who experienced sudden, unexpected death.

Urine/blood ratios of ethanol in deaths attributed to acute alcohol poisoning and chronic alcoholism

The concentrations of ethanol were determined in femoral venous blood (BAC) and urine (UAC) and the UAC/BAC ratios were evaluated for a large case series of forensic autopsies in which the primary cause of death was either acute alcohol poisoning ( N=628) or chronic alcoholism ( N=647). In alcohol poisoning deaths both UAC and BAC were higher by about 2 g/l compared with chronic alcoholism deaths. In acute alcohol poisoning deaths the minimum BAC was 0.74 g/l and the distribution of UAC/BAC ratios agreed well with the shape of a Gaussian curve with mean±standard deviation (S.D.) and median (2.5th and 97.5th centiles) of 1.18±0.182 and 1.18 (0.87 and 1.53), respectively. In alcoholism deaths, when the BAC was above 0.74 g/l ( N=457) the mean±S.D. and median (2.5th and 97.5th centiles) UAC/BAC ratios were 1.30±0.29 and 1.26 (0.87 and 2.1), respectively. When the BAC was below 0.74 g/l ( N=190), the mean and median UAC/BAC ratios were considerably higher, being 2.24 and 1.58, respectively. BAC and UAC were highly correlated in acute alcohol poisoning deaths ( r=0.84, residual S.D.=0.47 g/l) and in chronic alcoholism deaths ( r=0.95, residual S.D.=0.41 g/l). For both causes of death ( N=1275), the correlation between BAC and UAC was r=0.95 and the residual S.D. was 0.46 g/l. The lower UAC/BAC ratio observed in acute alcohol poisoning deaths (mean and median 1.18:1) suggests that these individuals died before absorption and distribution of ethanol in all body fluids were complete. The higher UAC/BAC ratio in chronic alcoholism (median 1.30:1) is closer to the value expected for complete absorption and distribution of ethanol in all body fluids.

Histologic characteristics of coronary artery in relation to the renovasculopathies of hypertension.

Coronary heart disease is a consequence of prior conditions in the coronary artery that invariably include atherosclerotic plaques with necrotic core. Evidence indicates that atheronecrosis is itself a late outcome of certain precursor conditions in the arteries, especially low density of intimal smooth muscle cells and extensive foam cell infiltration. A sequential process is indicated: the defined precursors set the conditions, atheronecrosis appears, and from this coronary heart disease eventually emerges. Hypertensive kidneys typically manifest intimal fibroplasia of cortical arteries and hyalinization of arterioles. Both forms of renovasculopathy, fibroplastic and hyaline, correlate with the early development of atheronecrosis and its precursor conditions. Hyalinization of renal arterioles, however, especially marks subjects with the greatest risk of further developing heart disease. These findings suggest an important prognostic significance to the finding of hyaline deposits in renocortical arterioles; the affected patient may be at exceptionally high risk for coronary heart disease. Results are derived from a series of forensic autopsies, in which morphometric assessment of paraffin sections of coronary arteries and renal cortex was performed.

Using autopsy series to estimate the disease "reservoir" for ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast: how much more breast cancer can we find?

To determine how many cases of breast cancer might be found if women not known to have the disease were thoroughly examined (the disease "reservoir"). MEDLINE search from 1966 to the present. Hospital-based and forensic autopsy series examining women not known to have had breast cancer during life. Observed prevalence of occult invasive breast cancer or ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) in which the number of women who were given a diagnosis was the numerator and the number of women examined was the denominator. For each autopsy series, we attempted to ascertain the level of scrutiny (sampling method, number of slides examined) given to the pathologic specimens. Among seven autopsy series of women not known to have had breast cancer during life, the median prevalence of invasive breast cancer was 1.3% (range, 0% to 1.8%) and the median prevalence of DCIS was 8.9% (range, 0% to 14.7%). Prevalences were higher among women likely to have been screened (that is, women 40 to 70 years of age). The mean number of slides examined per breast ranged from 9 to 275; series that reported higher levels of scrutiny tended to discover more cases of cancer. A substantial reservoir of DCIS is undetected during life. How hard pathologists look for the disease and, perhaps, their threshold for making the diagnosis are potentially important factors in determining how many cases of DCIS are diagnosed. The latter has important implications for what it means to have the disease.

Breast Mammographic Pattern: A Concatenation of Confounding and Breast Cancer Risk Factors

A mammographic pattern of > 25% radiodensity is associated with increased risk for breast cancer. Mammographic pattern is influenced by age, body weight, reproductive factors, and race/ethnicity. The interaction among these factors in predicting breast radiographic pattern, and their association with the presence of histologic markers of increased risk of breast cancer, is poorly defined. To elucidate the relations among epidemiologic, radiographic, and histologic markers of breast cancer risk, the authors studied these factors in an unselected forensic autopsy series, accumulated between 1978 and 1983, of 486 women aged 15-98 years at death. Older age and/or postmenopausal status was the strongest predictor of radiolucent breast pattern. Obesity, defined as a Quetelet index (weight(kg)/height(m)2) of > 25, and large breast size were also highly significant predictors of breast radiolucency. Factors related to parity were not significant predictors of breast parenchymal pattern. Native American race was an independent predictor of breast radiolucency in this population. A dense parenchymal pattern was associated with increased prevalence of marked cystic change and the presence of duct epithelial hyperplasia in women under age 35. The results support the association of breast radiodensity with ethnic/racial, reproductive, and histologic factors predictive of cancer risk. However, this association is overshadowed by the effects of obesity and aging or menopause.

Abuse of Alcohol in Sudden Out‐of‐Hospital Deaths in Finland

Alcoholism is known to be greatly underdiagnosed in death certificates, a fact that biases in estimates of alcohol-related mortality. An autopsy series of 1658 cases (920 with natural cause of death and 738 nonnatural) was reviewed to evaluate the extent of this bias, and also to see how well different sources of information served as indicators of alcoholism when alcohol-related disease diagnosed at autopsy was considered as a gold standard. A stepwise logistic regression model adjusted by age and sex showed police reports of individual's alcohol usage and blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of > 2.9/1000 at autopsy to be the two most significant predictors of chronic alcohol abuse (p < 0.0001). The specificities of these two parameters as predictors of chronic alcohol abuse were generally high and sensitivities low. The authors see high BAC (> 2.9/1000), due to its high specificity, as particularly suggestive of chronic heavy drinking. However, it is wise to use these parameters only as an aid in decision-making, not as sole indicators of alcoholism. Deaths associated with chronic heavy drinking were frequent, 50.5% of the total series (male 56.4%, female 37.1%). For all but one age-group (male 45-64 years), however, death certificates mentioned alcohol-related diseases in less than half of these cases. Especially evident underdiagnosis was found for female and males 65 years and older. These results indicate that alcoholism is frequent in such a highly selected population as a series of forensic autopsies and suggest that estimates of prevalence of alcoholism based only on review of death certificates are to be considered with great caution.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Delayed increases in liver cirrhosis mortality and frequency of alcoholic liver cirrhosis following an increment and redistribution of alcohol consumption in Finland: evidence from mortality statistics and autopsy survey covering 8533 cases in 1968-1988.

Changes in the legal restrictions for alcohol consumption in 1969 liberated purchasing and marketing of low-alcohol beer. Subsequently, within the space of 5 years, the per capita consumption of absolute alcohol increased from 4.2 to 6.5 liters. To evaluate the possible effects of this change upon liver cirrhosis mortality as well as prevalence of liver cirrhosis in autopsy series, we surveyed mortality statistics and data from 8,533 medicolegal autopsies in 1968 through 1988. Liver cirrhosis mortality statistics revealed a highly significant (p less than 0.001) increase from 6.4 to 13.7 per 100,000 during the period, and similarly, the prevalence of liver cirrhosis in the autopsy series showed a highly significant (p less than 0.001) increase from 3.0% to 6.1%. More specifically, this increase was attributable to a highly significantly (Chi-square 15.4, p less than 0.001) increased proportion of alcoholic liver cirrhosis occurring at a younger age and almost exclusively in males. The stepwise mode of increase as well as the changes in sex and age distribution of cirrhosis since 1969 could be interpreted as an effect of distribution of consumption to a new generation of consumers. The forensic autopsy series seemed to reflect changes in per capita consumption with a shorter time lag than with mortality statistics. Additionally, only 7% of the 448 cirrhotics singled out from this material exhibited liver cirrhosis as a cause of death and were thus also included in the official mortality statistics, suggesting the greater accuracy of our forensic autopsy series.

Parity factors and prevalence of fibrocystic breast change in a forensic autopsy series

The relationship of reproductive factors, such as nulliparous vs ever-parous status, age at first birth, and total parity, with morphologic prevalence of fibrocystic changes were examined using autopsy material from three ethnic/racial groups at varying risks for breast cancer. Although there was a trend toward a protective effect of ever-parous status, there was no statistically significant difference in the prevalence of fibrocystic disease in any group defined by parity status. The ethnic differences in the prevalence of fibrocystic changes were not explained by the differences in parity status distribution for the three ethnic/racial groups.