Determination of Postmortem Interval by Decomposition Changes: An Ambiguous Phenomenon

Introduction

Use of Post-mortem interval (PI) in the determination of the time of death in medical-legal autopsy cases is a common practice in many countries. Post-mortem changes have been used to estimate the exact time when subjects died (Cockle & Bell, 2015). In this research study, the authors sought to find out how decomposition changes in a middle-aged man whose time of death is known compared to Post-mortem changes described in standard literature.

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Methodology

The authors did an autopsy on the middle-aged man who had a history of chronic alcoholism, hypertension and was under medication for a long duration. The autopsy was conducted 32 hours after the reported time of death. Decomposition changes present during the autopsy included the disappearance of rigor mortis, abdominal bloating with skin pilling and greenish discoloration, the presence of marbling and presence of blood from the mouth and nostrils (Yadav, Dey, Anurangi, & Kanwar, 2017). There were no significant changes in the external examination. Examination of all internal organs revealed congestion, softness and decomposition specifically in the small and large intestines. The heart was soft and flabby with normal weight (309 grams). However, the LAD coronary artery had atherosclerotic plaques with significant stenosis in the upper and middle parts. The other vessels had a mild blockage.

Discussion

In this case study, the authors were able to establish that the post-mortem decomposition findings were not corresponding with the standard medical literature. In the tropical areas, temperature and moisture are known factors that influence the onset of decomposition. Other known factors that speed up this process include obesity, heavy clothing and sepsis. The authors report that no studies relating to the use of gross postmortem changes in estimating PI have been conducted in India in the recent past (Yadav, Dey, Anurangi, & Kanwar, 2017). This creates a great concern because judges rely heavily on time since death in the autopsy report when making decisions on the accused. Therefore, use of the unreliable and inaccurate PI can lead to the wrong implementation of justice

Conclusion

In conclusion, PI is a common variable that is used in the estimation of time of death in many countries. Gross postmortem changes such as lividity, coldness, bloating have been used in India to make medical-legal decisions. In the research study done, the authors concluded that PI is an inaccurate variable in the estimation of time of death because the changes are influenced by many factors. The authors recommend that the judicial system should be made aware that PI is only an approximation of the time of the death of a specific subject.

References

Cockle, D. L., & Bell, L. S. (2015). Human decomposition and the reliability of a 'Universal'model for post mortem interval estimations. Forensic science international, 253, 136--e1. doi:10.1016/j.forsciint.2015.05.018

Yadav, A., Dey, A., Anurangi, R. P., & Kanwar, H. (2017). Determination of postmortem interval by decomposition changes: An ambiguous phenomenon. (A. Goren, Ed.) Clin Case Rep Rev 3. doi:10.15761/CCRR.1000327