Examination Of Persons Found Dead
When a medical man is called to a case of sudden death, he should
carefully note anything likely to throw any light on the cause of death.
He should notice the place where the body was found, the position and
attitude of the body, the soil or surface on which the body lies, the
position of surrounding objects, and the condition of the clothes. He
should also notice if there are any signs of a struggle having taken
place, if the hands are clenched, if the face is distorted, if there has
been foaming at the mouth, and if urine or fæces have been passed
involuntarily. Urine may be drawn off with a catheter and tested for
albumin and sugar.
If required to make a post-mortem examination, every cavity and
important organ of the body must be carefully and minutely examined, the
seat of injury being inspected first.
More
-
Crimes
Forensic medicine is also called Medical Jurisprudence or Legal Medicine, and includes all questions which bring medical matters into relation with the law. It deals, therefore, with (1) crimes and (2) civil injuries. 1. A crime is the voluntar... Death By Drowning
Death by drowning occurs when breathing is arrested by watery or semi-fluid substances--blood, urine, etc. The fluid acts mechanically by entering the air-cells of the lung and preventing the due oxidation of the blood. The post-mortem appearances... Death By Hanging
In hanging, death occurs by asphyxia, as in drowning. Sensibility is soon lost, and death takes place in four or five minutes. The eyes in some cases are brilliant and staring, tongue swollen and livid, blood or bloody froth is found about the mou... Death By Strangulation
This differs from hanging in that the body is not suspended. It may be effected by a ligature round the neck, or by direct pressure on the windpipe with the hand, in which case death is said to be caused by throttling. Strangulation is frequently ... Death By Suffocation
Signs and Symptoms.--There are usually three stages: 1. Exaggerated respiratory activity; air hunger; anxiety; congested appearance of face; ringing in ears. 2. Loss of consciousness; convulsions; relaxation of sphincters. 3. Respirations f... Death From AnÆsthetics Etc
The coroner in England and Wales and Ireland must inquire into every case of death during the administration of an anæsthetic. The anæsthetist has to appear at the inquest, and must answer a long series of questions relative to the administratio... Death From Cold Or Heat
=Cold.=--The weak, aged, or infants, readily succumb to low temperatures. The symptoms are increasing lassitude, drowsiness, coma, with sometimes illusions of sight. Post mortem, bright red patches are found on the skin surface, and the blood rema... Death From Lightning And Electricity
The signs of death from lightning vary greatly. In some cases there are no signs; in others the body may be most curiously marked. Wounds of various characters--contused, lacerated, and punctured--may be produced. There may be burns, vesications, ... Death From Starvation
The post-mortem appearances in death from starvation are as follows: There is marked general emaciation; the skin is dry, shrivelled, and covered with a brown, bad-smelling excretion; the muscles soft, atrophied, and free from fat; the liver is sm... Definition Of A Poison
Though the law does not define in definite terms what a poison really is, it lays stress on the malicious intention in giving a drug or other substance to an individual. It is a felony to administer, or cause to be administered, any poison or othe... Delivery
The signs of recent delivery are as follows: The face is pale, with dark circles round the eyes; the pulse quickened; the skin soft, warm, and covered with a peculiar sweat; the breasts full, tense, and knotty; the abdomen distended, its integumen... Dementia: Acute Chronic Senile And Paralytic
In dementia the mental aberration does not occur until the mind has become fully developed, thus differing from amentia, which is congenital or comes on very early in life. =Acute Dementia.=--This is a condition of profound melancholy or stupor,... Detection Of Blood-stains Etc
Stains may require detection on clothing, on cutting instruments, on floors and furniture, etc. The following are the distinctive characters of blood-stains: (a) =Ocular Inspection.=--Blood-stains on dark-coloured materials, which in daylight m... Detection Of Poisons
Notice the smell, colour, and general appearance, of the matter submitted for examination. The odour may show the presence of prussic acid, alcohol, opium, or phosphorus. The colour may indicate salts of copper, cantharides, etc. Seeds of plants m... Digitalis
All parts of the plant Digitalis purpurea (purple foxglove) are poisonous. Contains the glucoside digitalin and other active principles. Symptoms.--Nausea, vomiting, purging, and abdominal pains. Vomited matter grass-green in colour. Headache, g... Duration Of Pregnancy
The natural period of gestation is considered as forty weeks, ten lunar months, or 280 days. A medical witness would have to admit the possibility of gestation being prolonged to 300 days, and if this time were not very materially exceeded it woul... Duty Of Practitioner In Supposed Case Of Poisoning
If called to a case supposed or suspected to be one of poisoning, the medical man has two duties to perform: To save the patient's life, and to place himself in a position to give evidence if called on to do so. If life is extinct, his duty is a s... Evidence Of Poisoning
It may be inferred that poison has been taken from consideration of the following factors: Symptoms and post-mortem appearances, experiments on animals, chemical analysis, and the conduct of suspected persons. 1. Symptoms in poisoning usually co... Evidences Of Live Birth
The signs of live birth prior to respiration are negative and positive. A negative opinion may be formed when evidence is found of the child having undergone intra-uterine maceration. In this case the body will be flaccid and flattened; the ilia p... Examination Of Persons Found Dead
When a medical man is called to a case of sudden death, he should carefully note anything likely to throw any light on the cause of death. He should notice the place where the body was found, the position and attitude of the body, the soil or surf... Examination Of Persons Of Unsound Mind
The following hints with regard to the examination of patients supposed to be insane will be useful: The general appearance and shape of head, complexion, and expression of countenance, gait, movements, and speech, should be noted; the state of th... Feigned Diseases
Malingering in its various forms is by no means uncommon, and by many is regarded as a disease in itself. It is necessary, however, to distinguish between those cases in which it is feigned for some definite purpose--for example, to escape punishm... Foeticide Or Criminal Abortion
This consists in giving to any woman, or causing to be taken by her, with intent to procure her miscarriage, any poison or other noxious thing, or using for the same purpose any instruments or other means whatsoever. It is a felony to procure or a... Gaseous Poisons
=Carbon Dioxide.=--Carbon dioxide is a product of combustion and respiration, and is generated in many ways during fermentation. It is a constituent of choke damp due to explosions in coal-mines, and is given off from lime-kilns, brick-kilns, and ... Gunshot Wounds
These may be punctured, contused, or lacerated. Round balls make a larger opening than those which are conical. Small shot fired at a short distance make one large ragged opening; while at distances greater than 3 feet the shot scatter and there i... Hydrochloric Acid
=Hydrochloric Acid=, muriatic acid, or spirit of salt, is not uncommonly used for suicidal purposes, being fifth in the list. Method of Extraction from the Stomach.--The same as for sulphuric acid. As hydrochloric acid is a constituent of the ga... Hydrocyanic Acid
=Prussic Acid= is the most active of poisons. The diluted hydrocyanic acid of the Pharmacopoeia contains 2 per cent. of hydrocyanic acid, Scheele's 4 per cent. It is a colourless liquid, feebly acid, with odour of bitter almonds. =Cyanide of Po... Idiocy Imbecility Cretinism
=Idiocy= is not a disease, but a congenital condition in which the intellectual faculties are either never manifested or have not been sufficiently developed to enable the idiot to acquire an amount of knowledge equal to that acquired by other per... Impotence And Sterility
In the male, impotence may arise from physical or mental causes. The physical causes may be--too great or too tender an age; malformation of the genital organs; crypsorchides, defect or disease in the testicles; constitutional disease (diabetes, n... Incised Wounds And Those Accompanied By Solution Of Continuity
These comprise incised, punctured, and lacerated wounds. In a recent incised wound inflicted during life there is copious hæmorrhage, the cellular tissue is filled with blood, the edges of the wound gape and are everted, and the cavity of the wou... Infanticide
Infanticide, or the murder of a new-born child, is not treated as a specific crime, but is tried by the same rules as in cases of felonious homicide. The term is applied technically to those cases in which the mother kills her child at, or soon af... Inheritance
In order to inherit, the child must be born alive, must be born during the lifetime of the mother, and must be born capable of inheriting--that is to say, monsters are incapable of inheriting. There is a mode of inheritance called 'tenancy by cour... Inorganic Irritants
=Nitrate of Potassium (Nitre, Saltpetre)--Bitartrate of Potassium (Cream of Tartar)--Alum (Double Sulphate of Alumina and Potassium)--Chlorides of Lime, Sodium, and Potassium.=--All these are irritant drugs, and give the usual symptoms. ... Iodine--iodide Of Potassium
=Iodine= occurs in scales of a dark bluish-black colour. It strikes blue with solution of starch, and stains the skin and intestines yellowish-brown. Liquid preparations, as the liniment or tincture, may be taken accidentally or suicidally. Sym... Lead And Its Preparations
=Acetate of Lead= (Sugar of Lead).--A glistening white powder or crystalline mass. Soluble in water, with a sweetish taste. It is practically the only lead salt which gives rise to acute symptoms, and only when taken in large doses. Symptoms.--... Legitimacy
A child born in wedlock is presumed to have the mother's husband for its father. This may, however, be open to question upon the following grounds: Absence or death of the reputed father; impotence or disease in the husband preventing matrimonial ... Mania
Under the term 'mania' are included all those forms of mental unsoundness in which there is undue excitement. It is divided into general, intellectual, and moral, and each of the two latter classes again into general and partial. =General Mania... Marriage And Divorce
Marriage may be accomplished in many ways: (1) By the publication of banns; (2) by an ordinary licence; (3) by a special licence; (4) by the Superintendent-Registrar's licence; (5) by a special licence granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury in co...