Time Of Death Determination Research Articles

Determination of time of death by blinded post-mortem interrogation of cardiac implantable electrical devices

Postmortal interrogation of cardiac implantable electrical devices (CIED) may contribute to the determination of time of death in forensic medicine. Recent studies aimed to improve estimation of time of death by combining findings from autopsy, CIED interrogation and patients´ medical history. CIED from deceased undergoing forensic autopsy were included, if time of death remained unclear after forensic assessment. CIED explanted from deceased with known time of death were analysed as a control cohort. CIED were sent to our device interrogation lab and underwent analysis blinded for autopsy findings, medical history and police reports. The accuracy of time of death determination and the accuracy of time of death in the control cohort served as primary outcome. A total of 87 CIED were analysed. The determination of time of death was possible in 54 CIED (62%, CI 52–72%). The accuracy of the estimated time of death was 92.3% in the control cohort. Certain CIED type and manufacturers were associated with more successful determination. Blinded postmortal analysis enables a valid determination of the time of death in the majority of CIED. Analysis of explanted CIED in a cardiological core lab is feasible and should be implemented in forensic medicine.

Determination of Time of Death Based on Blood Ring Formation and RNA Degradation

Time of death (TOD) determination is crucial in criminal cases. The method used to determine the TOD so far is only based on the state of the corpse found, therefore a new method is needed to improve the accuracy of the TOD determination. This study aims to determine the TOD based on a new method, namely the formation of blood rings and RNA degradation. Blood is commonly found in crime scenes. Blood consists of liquid part that is plasma and cellular part consisting of erythrocytes, leukocyte, and thrombocytes. The composition of blood as a liquid that contains dissolved solids makes the drops of dried blood forming “coffee ring effect”, which is a ring-like form on the perimeter of a blood drop. Coffee ring effect is used as an indicator of time by looking at the thickness of the ring formed from the perimeter of the blood drop to the middle which increases with time. RNA degradation was observed using Peptidylprolyl isomerase A (PPIA) gene. The PPIA gene is found in leukocyte and is used to see the degradation of RNA per 30 minutes period using the RT-PCR and qPCR methods. Degradation was observed by comparing the cycle threshold (ct) value of the standard curve with the ct value of the samples per unit time. TOD could be determined by the percentage of the blood ring thickness up until 120th minutes, and by observing the degradation of RNA until the 60th minute, after that the RNA had completely degraded.

MicroRNAs: An Update of Applications in Forensic Science.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of non-coding RNAs containing 18–24 nucleotides that are involved in the regulation of many biochemical mechanisms in the human body. The level of miRNAs in body fluids and tissues increases because of altered pathophysiological mechanisms, thus they are employed as biomarkers for various diseases and conditions. In recent years, miRNAs obtained a great interest in many fields of forensic medicine given their stability and specificity. Several specific miRNAs have been studied in body fluid identification, in wound vitality in time of death determination, in drowning, in the anti-doping field, and other forensic fields. However, the major problems are (1) lack of universal protocols for diagnostic expression testing and (2) low reproducibility of independent studies. This review is an update on the application of these molecular markers in forensic biology.

An introduction to postmortem interval estimation in medicolegal death investigations

AbstractThroughout the history of forensic medicine, the postmortem interval has been one of the most commonly and thoroughly investigated problems. The importance of an accurate PMI in the context of a medicolegal death investigation cannot be understated due to its utility and application toward investigative determinations including inclusion or exclusion of suspects, determination of time of assault versus time of death, and preliminary victim identification. However, despite its importance, the question of postmortem interval estimation is often answered with a low degree of accuracy as compared to the rates of certainty within other forensic disciplines. While there are various methods that may be utilized for answering the time of death question including both scientific and investigative techniques, the variables that affect the application of these methods to death investigations are abundant. As a result, there are numerous limitations associated with time of death determination in a medicolegal death investigation and the estimation of the postmortem interval must be done with caution and deference to the many variables that affect its accuracy.This article is categorized under: Forensic Anthropology > Time Since Death Estimation Forensic Medicine > Death Scene Investigation Crime Scene Investigation > Education and Formation

Time of death determination at the scene: comparison of three methods based on a single rectal temperature measurement (‘rule of thumb’ 1 and 2, Henssge nomogram) to the outer ear temperature measurement method

Time of death determination at the scene: comparison of three methods based on a single rectal temperature measurement (‘rule of thumb’ 1 and 2, Henssge nomogram) to the outer ear temperature measurement method

Time of death determination following dissociated death of the brain. Clinical and electroencepholographic criteria

Drug Prescribing for Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease in General Practice: a Cross-Sectional Study