Postmortem computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging facilitates forensic autopsy in a fatal case of poisoning with formic acid, diphenhydramine, and ethanol.
A case of fatal poisoning by ingesting formic acid, diphenhydramine, and ethanol by a 25-year-old woman who committed suicide is presented. Prior to autopsy, postmortem computed tomography and postmortem magnetic resonance tomography were performed and revealed severe damage to the stomach, the left thoracic wall, and parts of the liver. Imaging detected acid-induced fluid-fluid level within the thoracic cavity (fat-equivalent fluid and necrotic pleural effusion). This case report illustrates that postmortem cross-sectional imaging may facilitate dissection of severely damaged or complex regions, and may provide additional information compared to autopsy and toxicological examinations alone.
['Berger|Florian|F|', 'Steuer|Andrea E|AE|', 'Rentsch|Katharina|K|', 'Gascho|Dominic|D|', 'Stamou|Stamatios|S|', 'Schärli|Sarah|S|', 'Thali|Michael J|MJ|', 'Krämer|Thomas|T|', 'Flach|Patricia M|PM|']
D000328:Adult D002057:Burns, Chemical D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants D004155:Diphenhydramine D000431:Ethanol D005260:Female D049429:Forensic Pathology D005561:Formates D006801:Humans D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging D061330:Multidetector Computed Tomography D013405:Suicide
Postmortem computed tomography Formic acid Diphenhydramine Ethanol Postmortem magnetic resonance tomography Fatal combined intoxication Virtopsy