Legal Medicine最新文献

Introduction

Material and method

Results

Conclusion

Despite the increased global mobility owing to the development of the international community, there remains a need for population-specific methods to estimate children’s ages. Therefore, this study aimed to substantiate the necessity for a Japanese-specific age estimation method by contrasting the formerly reported age estimation accuracy and bias using Demirjian’s method for Chinese, Taiwanese, South Korean, and Japanese children. We analyzed 1,558 panoramic radiographs from Japanese children (777 boys and 781 girls), assessed the maturity of seven left permanent teeth using Demirjian’s criteria, and calculated the estimated age using Demirjian’s method. The accuracy of the estimated ages was compared with previous reports of children from other East Asian countries which used the same age estimation method. Chinese, Taiwanese, and South Korean boys and girls were all reported to be older than their chronological ages, with the Eastern and Northern Chinese regions being the only exceptions. The same was true for Japanese children: the estimated ages of both sexes tended to be higher than their chronological age. However, there were significant variations in the values, indicating the differences in tooth growth and development between East Asian countries and sexes. Therefore, new regression equations specific to the Japanese population were formulated, and their accuracy was evaluated as the final result of this study.

E-scooters have become increasingly popular for short-distance travel in urban areas, but this rise in usage also brings about an increased risk of accidents. Studies have shown that approximately 40% of electric scooter accident victims admitted to hospitals suffer head injuries. Therefore, it is crucial to implement safety measures and improve safety systems and equipment to mitigate these risks. One approach to gaining insights into the injuries users face is through simulations using the multi-body method. This method allows for the reconstruction of accidents by modeling and analyzing the dynamic behavior of interconnected bodies. This study aims to assess the impacts on the user’s head and the injuries they may sustain in electric scooter accidents using numerical methods. Initially, a reference scenario was established based on a YouTube video, with the assumption that the user was an average-height man. Simulations were conducted for various percentiles, including both males and females. Different velocities were simulated to determine the threshold velocity at which survival becomes practically impossible. Two scenarios were considered: one where the car braked for 0.333 s and another where the distance between the start the braking task and the collision was kept constant. The location of the first head impact on the vehicle was also examined. Injury assessment was conducted using two criteria: Head Injury Criterion (HIC) and Brain Injury Criterion (BrIC). The study found that smaller individuals are more vulnerable to severe injuries, and higher car velocities correlate with more severe user injuries. Furthermore, the location of the first impact varies between genders, with women more likely to experience impacts in the lower part of the windshield, while men tend to experience impacts in the central zone. This study highlights the importance of considering user characteristics and accident dynamics in assessing injury risks associated with e-scooters.

Ballistic gelatin has gained a status as standard method for terminal ballistic testing and experimenting. Variation considering the recipe and manufacturing of the blocks exists. The golden standard has been a cuboid gelatin block, dimensions varying according to the type and kinetic energy of the ammunition.

Powerful ammunition requires larger gelatin blocks, making their handling and manufacturing difficult. This is the case especially with powerful, expanding hunting ammunition that leave most of their kinetic energy within the gelatin block. High speed cameras reveal that blocks tend to expand or swell significantly and even travel upon impact, potentially affecting to some basic values of terminal ballistics such as cavitation and energy transfer.

In this study, we wanted to experiment new method to study terminal ballistics of high power, expanding ammunition by using cylinder shaped gelatin blocks. Secondly, we used a plastic tube around the gelatin cylinder to restrict the expansion/swelling. Thirdly we attached our gelatin target to a sturdy platform to restrict the movement of the cylinder and potentially improve the energy transfer of the bullet into the gelatin.

To conduct our study we compared our experimental setting with a traditional, cuboid gelatin block. After the test firing the blocks underwent computed tomography scanning with clinical equipment. Three-dimensional reconstructions of gelatin cavitation and bullet fragment deposition were created.

Our results clearly demonstrate that the restricted expansion of the block also clearly restricts the cavitation inside the gelatin. We believe that the method can be further developed, and it allows better potential for ballistic testing of heavy ammunition. In addition, it may aid in terminal ballistic reconstruction of forensic cases with gunshot trauma in anatomical structures fully enclosed by connective tissue such as brain and structures of the thorax.

A 50-year-old male was found dead in a park. Postmortem analysis using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry revealed lemborexant concentrations of 1.651 μg/mL in blood from the right heart, 0.236 μg/mL in the urine, and 58.642 μg/mL in the stomach contents. Based on the autopsy findings and postmortem analyses, the cause of death was identified as acute lemborexant poisoning due to an overdose. Although lemborexant is generally considered safe, its excessive ingestion can be fatal. Since no lethal concentration of lemborexant has been reported, the blood levels in this case can serve as a reference. Despite its widespread clinical use, lemborexant is not detected by the rapid urine drug screening tests currently available in Japanese investigative agencies. Forensic pathologists must be vigilant in order not to overlook acute lemborexant poisoning.

The present study aimed to investigate the effect of Crocus sativus (Cs) on paraquat (PQ)-induced learning and memory deficits as well as brain and lung oxidative stress and systemic inflammation, and oxidative stress in rats.

Rats were exposed to saline (Ctrl) or PQ (PQ groups) aerosols. PQ groups were treated with 0.03 mg/kg/day dexamethasone (Dexa), 20 and 80 mg/kg/day Cs-L and Cs-H, 5 mg/kg/day pioglitazone (Pio), and Cs-L+Pio for 16 days during PQ exposure period. Learning and memory abilities were assessed by Morris water maze (MWM) and passive avoidance tests.

PQ group showed increased numbers of total and differential WBCs in blood, and increased malondialdehyde (MDA), in the serum, brain, and lung but reduced thiol, catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels compared to the control group (for all, p < 0.001). The escape latency and traveled distance were increased in the PQ group. However, the time spent in the target quadrant in the MWM test and the latency to enter the dark room were reduced after receiving an electrical shock (p < 0.05 to P<0.001). In all treated groups, measured values were improved compared to PQ group (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001). The combination of Cs-L+Pio showed more pronounced effects compared to either treatment alone (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001).

These findings suggest that Cs has neuroprotective properties and may be beneficial in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases induced by noxious agents such as PQ.