Post Mortem Interval

The Megyesi et al., (2005) Total Body Score (TBS) system is one of the most widely accepted techniques for measuring the amount of decomposition visible on remains. This research looked to determine if the subjective nature of the method affected the inter-observer reliability. Three independent observers scored a total of six Sus scrofa left to decompose over 18 weeks in the UK. When tested with Krippendorff's alpha statistic, the reliability between the observers was high with little difference recorded. However, the study also highlighted the requirement for further research into the teaching and application of such scoring systems.

Aspirantes a titularse como embalsamadores licenciados, tanatopractores con cédula profesional, auxiliares forenses, técnicos de disección anatómica, Histotecnólogo estudiantes, embalsamadores profesionales y profesionales del sector funerario - mortuorio.

Bone proteomic studies using animal proxies and skeletonized human remains have delivered encouraging results in the search for potential biomarkers for precise and accurate post-mortem interval (PMI) and the age-at-death (AAD) estimation in medico-legal investigations. The development of forensic proteo-mics for PMI and AAD estimation is in critical need of research on human remains throughout decomposition, as currently the effects of both inter-individual biological differences and taphonomic alteration on the survival of human bone protein profiles are unclear. This study investigated the human bone proteome in four human body donors studied throughout decomposition outdoors. The effects of ageing phenomena (in vivo and post-mortem) and intrinsic and extrinsic variables on the variety and abundancy of the bone proteome were assessed. Results indicate that taphonomic and biological variables play a significant role in the survival of proteins in bone. Our findings suggest that in...

Entomologi forensik dapat ditakrifkan sebagai pengetahuan mengenai serangga yang berkait rapat dengan bangkai terutamanya manusia, dengan tujuan ia dapat digunakan dalam penentuan jangka masa pascakematian. Jangka masa pascakematian (PMI) dapat ditentukan ...

Available online at www.ptat.thaigov.net ... THE JOURNAL OF TROPICAL MEDICINE AND PARASITOLOGY 51 ... Ahmad Firdaus Mohd Salleh1, Mohamad Abdullah Marwi1, John Jeffery1, Nor Afandy Abd Hamid2, Raja Muhd Zuha3, Baharudin Omar4 ... 1 Department of Parasitology and ...

ABSTRACT: When insect evidence is obtained during autopsy, forensic entomologists make decisions regarding the effects of low-temperature (−1°C to 4°C) storage of the body and associated insects when estimating the post-mortem interval (PMI). To determine the effects of storage in a morgue cooler on the temperature of maggot masses, temperatures inside and outside of body bags containing a human cadaver and porcine cadavers (seven replicates) were measured during storage. Temperatures remained significantly higher (p<0.05) inside of the body bags relative to the cooler, and remained at levels sufficient for maggot feeding and development. If the assumption that no insect development takes place during preautopsy refrigeration is made, potential error rates in PMI estimation of 8.6–12.8% occur. The potential for blow fly larvae to undergo significant development while being stored in the morgue is a possibility that forensic entomologists should consider during an investigation involving samples collected from autopsy. Case and experimental evidence also demonstrate that substantial tissue loss can occur from maggot feeding during morgue storage.

Calculating the age of immature stages of blow flies showing the longest period of association with a dead body often gives a fairly accurate estimate of the post-mortem interval (PMI). Determination of the exact time of oviposition by these flies had generally been made in the light of the conventional belief that blow flies are neither active nor do they lay eggs during night. This method of estimating the time of oviposition was modified when Greenberg [J. Med. Entomol. 27 (1990) 807] reported nocturnal oviposition by three calliphorid species that are occasionally used as forensic indicators. However, a technical problem with his experiment, having long term consequences, was placement of the bait on the ground among bushes. This could have made it possible for the flies already resting near the bait to climb over the piece of meat and lay eggs. Though Greenberg’s experiment proves beyond any doubt that blow flies do lay eggs at night as well as by day, active attraction of these flies at night towards the oviposition medium had yet to be proved and the present experiment has been designed for this purpose.

Two young children, respectively 11 and 13 years old, originally from a small town of Southern Italy, were missing on 5 June 2006 (06:30 p.m.). Soon after their disappearance, the search for the missing children began. Broadcasters promptly transmitted a description of the missing children, pushing the entire community to assist in the search and safe recovery of the children. However, every effort was in vain, and the search went on for more than 1 year. During the missing-child search, the investigators collected enough evidence against the father, who was arrested 17 months after the children's disappearance. He was indicted for kidnapping, homicide and concealment of the two bodies. He never confessed to the crimes and claimed to be innocent.Three months after the conviction, a fireman found the two corpses in a subterranean, dry cistern next to a well over 20 m deep. The bodies were well preserved, almost mummified, with only few body-parts skeletonised. Based on dental records, they were identified as those of the two children, who had gone missing 1.5 years before. Signs of a very low insect activity were present, reasonably consistent with a rapid skin dehydration. The autopsy showed no signs of defence injuries or ligature consistent with strangulation or captivation, except for fractures of the axial skeleton at a number of points consistent with a fall from a low–medium height. The body of the elder brother presented major injuries with signs of recent haemorrhages and gut content analysis consistent with the last meal, which provided enough evidence to ascertain a very short survival time. The younger child showed minor injuries, signs of old haemorrhages and gastric- and intestine-emptying time consistent with a longer survival time of approximately 3–4 days, spent alone in the dark and cold cistern. A long post-mortem interval (PMI) of approximately 20 months was estimated, mainly from the pattern of insect succession. Based on such physical evidence, on 4 March 2008, 4 months after conviction and 40 days after the recovery of the two bodies, the father was finally released from prison and exonerated from previous indictment of homicide.