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27.02.2020 | Images in Forensics

Fatal gas embolism in hospital: accident or suicide?

verfasst von: Lucia Tattoli, Hannah Gauselmann, Lars Oesterhelweg

Erschienen in: Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology | Ausgabe 3/2020

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Abstract

Fatal gas embolism in hospital is usually an iatrogenic complication of invasive diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Air or gas enters the venous circulation, leading to cardiovascular failure or migrating to the systemic arterial circulation. A 73-year-old man died suddenly in hospital. An allergic reaction was initially suspected because of the presence of soft tissue swelling, but it was noticed that his oxygen tube was attached to the indwelling catheter inserted in the patient’s right median cubital vein. Whole-body post-mortem multi-slice computed tomography (pm-MSCT) revealed abundant gas in the subcutaneous fatty tissue, in the heart chambers, in the mediastinum, pericardium, thoracic wall and peritoneum. The external examination revealed massive subcutaneous emphysema with marked palpable cutaneous tension and crepitation on palpation of the entire body’s surface. Autopsy found gas bubbles in the heart and throughout the vascular system. Death was attributed to cardiac gas embolism.
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Metadaten
Titel
Fatal gas embolism in hospital: accident or suicide?
verfasst von
Lucia Tattoli
Hannah Gauselmann
Lars Oesterhelweg
Publikationsdatum
27.02.2020
Verlag
Springer US
Erschienen in
Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology / Ausgabe 3/2020
Print ISSN: 1547-769X
Elektronische ISSN: 1556-2891
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12024-020-00222-7

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