Nihon hoigaku zasshi = The Japanese journal of legal medicine最新文献

Fourteen unidentified human corpses were subjected to personal identification between 1999 and 2001. They included 5 drowning victims, three extensively burnt bodies, three skeletonized bodies, two highly putrefied bodies, and a body that had been run over by a train. Antemortem dental records were available in 12 cases, and all were positively identified. For 10 of these cases, antemortem panoramic X-ray photographs were obtained. For postmortem examination, panoramic X-ray photographs were taken using a portable dental panoramic radiography apparatus, LPX7007 (ASAHI ROENTGEN, Japan), during autopsy. Comparison of the ante- and postmortem panoramic X-ray photographs gave accurate and useful information not only about dental treatment but also the anatomical features surrounding the upper and lower jaws. This method is not time-consuming and also has the advantage of allowing dental treatment to be examined extraorally in cases where it is difficult to open the mouth of the corpse.

HLA antigens are highly polymorphic and therefore considered useful for personal identification in forensic medicine. The HLA system was first applied to forensic medicine for serological typing and is currently being applied to DNA typing. We first applied the HLA system to serological typing for paternity testing. Exclusion of paternity was confirmed in 39 of 93 cases. While serological HLA typing and other testing yielded consistent results in 37 of these 39 cases, exclusion of paternity could be confirmed only by serological HLA typing in 1 case and only by other testing in 1 case. Even in cases where exclusion could not be confirmed, it was possible to increase the probability of paternity. Bloodstains with known HLA types were then subjected to lymphocytotoxic inhibition tests to detect HLA antigens using one of the following methods: a two-stage method using an antibody and a bloodstain extract; a one-stage method where a bloodstain was allowed to react directly with an antiserum; or a washing method where washing was combined with one of the two above methods. Although HLA antigen detection was possible using any of these methods, some antisera yielded false-positive reactions, which limited the range of usable antisera. With the exception of cross-reactions, the washing method eliminated false-positive reactions. Antigens were detectable in bloodstains that were left to stand for up to 42 days. DNA typing based on the HLA system was investigated by determining DR and DQB1 types using the Hot Start PCR-SSP method with various samples of known HLA types and tissue samples collected from unidentified corpses. With bloodstains, DR typing was possible in all 61 cases, while DQB1 typing was possible in 31 of 33 cases. DR typing was possible even when bloodstains had been stored for 10 to 20 years. With saliva stains, typing was possible in all cases by purifying DNA using a Microcon 100 microconcentrator. With hair samples, typing was possible with all hair root samples and about half of hair shaft samples. With mixed stains, the detection of minor components was possible even at a low mixing ratio of 10:1. With cigarette butts, as was the case with saliva stains, typing was possible using purified DNA. Lipstick did not affect the results of DNA typing. Although DNA typing was possible in many cases using tissue samples collected from unidentified corpses, the results were affected by factors such as status of corpse, postmortem interval, postmortem change and tissue type. With some aorta samples, for example, typing was possible up to one year after death. The results of typing were also fairly favorable using bone samples.

Multiple injuries are frequently observed over the whole body of traffic victims in medico-legal autopsy cases. The assessment of a traffic casualty must include not only the victim but also the vehicle and the circumstances of the accident. Only consideration of all available data permits a better assessment of the mechanism of the crash and causation of injuries. J. M. Thevenet drove the first car carried from France to Japan on February 6, 1898. On October 28th, 1905, the first death by a road traffic accident occurred in Osaka. We performed a retrospective analysis of 279 traffic fatalities examined by medico-legal autopsy in Niigata that occurred over a twenty-two-year period from 1980 to 2001. All persons who had an ICD-10 code were grouped by 153 pedestrians, 43 pedal cyclists, 20 motorcycle riders, 45 car occupants, 11 occupants of pick-up trucks or vans, 4 occupants of heavy transport vehicles and 3 others. The average of ISS (injury scale score) is 40.7 in pedestrians, 26.7 in pedal cyclists, 32.4 in motorcycle riders, 25.1 in car occupants, 16.5 in occupants of pick-up trucks or vans, 24.0 in heavy transport vehicles and 69.0 in others. Rib fractures were observed in 170 cases (60.9%) and the frequency of other injuries was shown in Table 2. Criminal Punishment for drivers involved in 261 traffic accidents amounted to 35 sentences of imprisonment (13.4%), 46 suspension of execution of sentence (17.6%) and 60 sentence of fine (23.0%). Forty prone pedestrians run over by cars showed high ethanol levels in their blood. It was necessary to identify the driver of a vehicle in twelve car accidents and simulation with a computer is very useful. The average of ISS was 34.0 in ten drivers and 22.0 in fourteen fellow passengers. Four sudden natural deaths of drivers at the wheel, eight cases of death immediately after and from one day to five months after road traffic accidents, nine suicides and one intentional accident are excluded from traffic death. Both a medico legal and scientific compensation approach to automobile accident is now necessary.

In this paper, the status quo of forensic toxicology in Japan and the West is surveyed and a strategy to address future goals of Japanese forensic toxicology is proposed. Forensic toxicology in the West consists of three main areas--post-mortem forensic toxicology, human-performance forensic toxicology and forensic urine drug testing. In Japan, post-mortem forensic toxicology is practiced in university forensic medicine departments while most of the human-performance forensic toxicology is carried out in police laboratories. However, at least at present, strictly controlled workplace urine drug testing is not being performed, despite the abuse of drugs even by uniformed members of the National Defence Forces and police. For several years, the author has been introducing Western forensic toxicology guidelines and recommendations, translated into Japanese with the help of Western forensic toxicologists, to Japanese forensic toxicologists. Western forensic toxicology practice is at an advanced stage, whereas Japanese practice is in a critical condition and holds many problems awaiting solution, as exemplified by the urine drug testing in police laboratories. There is never any sample left for re-examination by the defence in all cases, though the initial volume of the urine sample available for examination is 30-50 ml. Only one organisation carries out everything from sampling to reporting and, in addition, the parent drug and its metabolites are not quantified. It is clear that the police laboratories do not work within good laboratory practice guidelines, nor do they have quality manuals or standard operating procedures manuals. A basic change in Japanese forensic toxicology practice is now essential. The author strongly recommends that, first of all, Japanese toxicologists should prepare forensic toxicology guidelines based on the Western models. The guidelines would progress the following objectives for forensic toxicology laboratories: 1) to have documented good laboratory practice standards; 2) to have a quality control system including a quality manual and standard operating procedures manual; 3) to have some degree of compulsion to implement quality assurance both through their own internal efforts and by appropriate remedial actions based on the results of an external proficiency testing scheme. For forensic toxicologists, the implications are that they should be: 1) responsible for ensuring that laboratory practices are performed under satisfactory conditions and 2) required to be certified as a forensic toxicology specialist in order to prove their forensic toxicology ability. For their part, governments should: 1) carry out administrative reforms related to forensic toxicology; 2) simplify the procedure for obtaining certified reference materials; 3) introduce a strict workplace urine drug testing programme for government employees, at least for those related to law enforcement. When all of these objectives have been realised, the

There are many sudden unexpected infant death cases which are easily diagnosed as sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) both with or without autopsy in Japan. A SIDS diagnosis may provide a cover for accidental or criminal death. SIDS should not be a convenient diagnostic box that shelters the cases of unexpected infant death which lack the necessary antemortem information to make the correct diagnosis. The authors consider that SIDS should be diagnosed according to the direction of the international definition of SIDS, and propose the following essentials for a forensic pathological diagnosis. 1) A thorough autopsy should be performed based on precise autopsy protocol, including not only histological observation, but also, if necessary, toxicological, bacteriological, viral and/or biochemical examinations. 2) The forensic pathologist should be provided with pertinent information regarding antemortem health status, past clinical history, social circumstances, death scene investigation, etc. In order to collect more precise information, the authors recommend using a questionnaire such as the example in this report to record information from the deceased's guardians. 3) Suspicion of accidental death or infanticide should be completely ruled out. SIDS should be diagnosed only after these three essentials have been satisfied. When there is even a slight suspicion of accidental death or infanticide, or when the forensic pathologist can not obtain pertinent information about the deceased, the causes and classification of the death should be diagnosed as unspecified or undetermined. That is, the causes and classification of the death are undetermined as to whether it is a natural or unnatural death. Furthermore, several warning flags indicating a possible SIDS diagnosis were proposed: a case found dead in a supine position, the existence of a foreign body in the respiratory tract or mild infectious findings. The authors also emphasize the physician's responsibility to report a case found dead or dying of unnatural or clinically unexplained causes to the police. This is the crucial first step in getting an accurate diagnosis of SIDS.

We carried out ABO genotyping of forensic samples by the amplified product length polymorphism (APLP) technique. We present two novel systems. One is termed as eight primers system, in which eight allele-specific primers are added into a single PCR reaction. Another is termed as six primers system. In both APLP systems, all alleles were clearly detected using DNA purified from forensic samples. In PCR amplification with direct addition of specimen, ABO genotyping was also possible to blood stain, seminal stain, blood, saliva and urine. Furthermore, ABO genotyping worked only to chimpanzee. This PCR-APLP method should be convepffnt and valuable for forensic practice.

The authors report two forensic autopsy cases of pilots who died in glider and ultra-light plane crashes in Aso, Kumamoto and review sky sports accidents in Japan (1981-1997). In the glider crash, sharp abdominal pain due to gallstones in a 78-year-old pilot was a possible cause of the accident. In the ultra-light plane crash, unskillful control of the plane by a 38-year-old pilot was the cause of the accident. The incidence of sky sports accidents increased from 12 cases in 1981 to 62 cases in 1997. The mortality rate of the victims of the accidents is very high. Investigation of natural diseases in pilots as a cause of accidents and the mechanisms of fatal injuries will help to assess preventive measures against sky sports accidents.

We report a method for estimation of age from teeth using the racemization of amino acids (racemization method). This method is based on the characteristics of the constant age-related increase in the amount of D-aspartic acid in dentin. We estimated age by measuring the ratio of D-aspartic acid to L-aspartic acid, i.e. the ratio of racemization ¿ratio of D/L, ln[(1 + D/L)/(1 - D/L)]¿. Because different D/L ratios have been obtained from different teeth in the same individuals and from different sites of dentin in the same tooth, we usually prepare bucco-lingual longitudinal sections at the central part of each tooth, and prepare samples of powdered whole dentin. This powder is then mixed and used to measure the D/L ratio in the dentin. To accurately estimate age from forensic specimens, we simultaneously measured the D/L ratios in more than four control teeth of the same type obtained from subjects of known age. Use of control teeth is necessary because it is sometimes difficult to maintain constant running conditions for gas chromatography to obtain reproducible values in different runs. Therefore, for every measurement, we determined an equation for calculating age from the D/L ratios of control teeth, and estimated the age of the specimen tooth by substituting in its D/L ratio. The most reliable results were obtained using samples of lower incisors or premolars, which are single-rooted teeth with a relatively small volume of dentin. Thus sampling of the dentin is easier than for other teeth. It is better to keep control teeth desiccated because racemization does not proceed readily under such conditions. The deviation from the actual age in the cases we examined was less than 3 years. Thus, racemization of amino acids can be used for accurate estimation of age from teeth.

Identification of human blood is very important in the practice of criminal investigation. Methods that are species-specific and highly sensitive usually require special laboratory equipment. To develop a method that is specific, sensitive, and convenient for use at the crime scene, we applied a sandwich-hybridization method for human blood identification. The test kit, which uses anti-human hemoglobin (Hb) monoclonal antibody, showed high species specificity and could detect as little as 20 ng human Hb. Cross-reactivity was observed only to baboon. It was able to detect dilutions up to 5,000,000 times and to identify a 15.5-year-old human bloodstain. Because the method is rapid (2 minutes) and does not require any special equipment, it is considered useful for crime scene investigation.

We have investigated the applicability of the Q.E.D. (Quantitative Ethanol Detector) and Aloco-Screen test kits for screening ethanol concentrations in forensic samples, such as hemolyzed/decomposed blood, urine and vitreous humor. Because both kits were based on enzymatic color reactions, direct application of the kits to hemoglobin-rich samples gave unsatisfactory results. The deproteinization of blood with trichloroacetic acid followed by membrane filtration overcame such problem. This procedure was also effective for pretreatment of urine and vitreous humor samples to suppress excessive color development in the Alco-Screen test. The ethanol concentrations in whole blood (n = 29), urine (n = 7) and vitreous humor (n = 6) samples determined by the Q.E.D. kit correlated well with those determined by gas chromatography; the correlation coefficients were 0.986, 0.975 and 0.993, respectively. Because of its high specificity and sensitivity to ethanol, Q.E.D. seems to be highly reliable for quantitative estimation of ethanol concentrations in forensic samples. Alco-Screen also had high sensitivity, the specificity to ethanol was relatively low; the color reaction was also observed in the presence of acetone, n-propanol, toluene, methanol, ethylene glycol, methamphetamine, diazepam and dichrovos. Therefore, if forensic samples are analyzed by the Alco-Screen, it is essential to confirm the positive results using other analytical methods.