International Journal of Medical Toxicology and Forensic Medicine
Volume:9 Issue: 1, Winter 2019

Sex estimation is an essential part of forensic identification. This study was conducted on the Iranian people to determine pelvic bones anthropometric characteristics. Radiography of 180 pelvic bones (90 males and 90 females) was studied. We measured the height of ilium, inter-acetabular distance, acetabular diameter, the greatest breadth of the pelvis, breadth of pelvic inlet, and the presence of the beaklike bony extension in both sexes. We found a significant difference between men and women regarding their mean height of ilium, acetabular diameter, inter-acetabular distance, breadth of the pelvic inlet in all studied X-rays. The highest accuracy for sex estimation was related to the height of ilium (77%). The prevalence of the beaklike bony extension was 43% in the studied population, 70% in males and 18% in females. When human skeletal remains containing pelvic bones are available, standard radiographic images along with other findings can be helpful in predicting the sex.

Normal cephalogram parameters seem to be gender discriminative and thus applicable in forensic medicine. We assessed validity of cephalogram parameters in gender identification among the Iranian population. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 75 Iranian men and 75 Iranian women aged 25 to 54 years. On their first admission, the physicians requested for simple lateral skull X-ray for all participants. Using area under the ROC curve, gonion-gonion index (AUC=0.741) and vertex- mention index (AUC=0.697) had a moderate value to discriminate male from female gender, while other parameters lacked enough power to differentiate gender. The best cut-off point in gonion-gonion index for discriminating male from female gender was 103.75 with a sensitivity of 74.7% and a specificity of 65.3%. Also, the best cut-off value for vertex-mention index to differentiate two genders was 244.75 with a sensitivity of 74.7% and a specificity of 62.7%. By considering two parameters of gonion-gonion and vertex-mention, it is possible to differentiate males from females with a sensitivity of 82.6% and a specificity of 71.8%. The two gonion-gonion and vertex-mention indices on cephalogram are applicable for gender discrimination.

Scorpion stings are a public health problem in Morocco. Many studies have been conducted in various geographic locations to explore this problem. In this context, this is the first study aims to provide an epidemiological analysis of scorpion stings in the prefecture of Figuig, Morocco between 2009 and 2017. This is a retrospective study providing an epidemiological analysis of scorpion stings over 9 years. The data comprised the number of cases collected each month, their origin, and clinical outcomes. The data were transferred to Microsoft Office Excel and the statistical analysis describing means, standard deviations and frequencies, was performed using the program Epi info 6. Over 9 years, there have been 1485 accidents recorded with sex ratio (M:F) as 1:1. The average incidence recorded is 127.62 per 100000 inhabitants per year. The stings were more frequent in summer months, particularly July and August, and 21.14% of the cases were children under 15 years. Of all cases, 73.4% did not need any medication, 3.03% needed hospitalization to treat specific symptoms and medical conditions, and 2.89% needed treatment for systemic effects of the envenomation. About 94.81% of all patients presented local symptoms and only 1.41% have their condition evolved into advanced symptoms and general manifestations. Scorpion stings are a public health problem in the prefecture of Figuig. The present study provided analysis in order to integrate the national strategy to fight the scorpion stings in Morocco.

Road traffic accidents are among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Benin Republic, in other words, a serious public health problem here. Consumption of alcoholic drinks is known as an important risk factor for road accidents. The aim of this preliminary study was to determine alcohol ingestion and its relationship with victims of road traffic accidents in Cotonou City, Benin. It is a descriptive and analytic study which carried out during January-June 2016. In this study, ethanol concentration was measured in the victims of traffic accidents’ blood. Information related to the injured people, their social characteristics, circumstances of accident occurrence, and the outcomes were also collected. In this study, 80 victims of road accidents were included. Most of the victims were men (64%), youth under 40 years (70%), and motorcyclists (83%). The overall prevalence of ethanol ingestion was 55% (64% in motorcyclists and 25% in motorists). Approximately, 16% of them were involved in fatal accidents. There was no association between ethanol ingestion frequency and factors such as the age of the injured, condition of the injured at the time of the accident, time of accident, and road condition on which the accident happened. This study indicated that a lot of traffic accident victims had consumed alcoholic drinks shortly before the accident in Benin.

Snakebite is a medical emergency and must receive high-priority assessment and treatment, even in patients who initially appear well. A few reports have been published regarding snakebite in Iran. This study aimed to assess the snakebite cases in a tertiary teaching hospital in the northwest of Iran. We assessed demographic and clinical characteristics of adult patients who were admitted because of snakebite into Ayatollah Taleghani Teaching Hospital, Urmia, West Azerbaijan, Iran, between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2014. After institutional Ethics Committee approval, the required data were extracted, analyzed, and reported. Totally, 60 snakebite cases were recorded during three years study period, of them 63.3% were male. The patients’ Mean±SD age was 37.8±15.8 years. The majority of snake envenomations occurred in the farms and mountains (71.4%), frequently in the afternoons of spring and summer seasons, and mostly affected inhabitants or visitors of the rural areas. The Mean±SD time interval between snake envenomation and admission to the first health center was 15.3±28.6 hours. The anatomic sites of the snakebite were lower and upper extremities in most instances (96.6%). Only 5 (8.3%) patients had severe toxicity, and 2 patients underwent surgical fasciotomy. The patients were treated using antihistamines (n=45), corticosteroids (n=35), antibiotics (n=54), polyvalent snake antivenins (n=50), wound care and tetanus immunization (n=39). The Mean±SD number of polyvalent snake antivenins used for each patient was 3.3±1.9 (range, 1-8) vials. There was no in-hospital fatality. Most snakebites victims in the northwest of Iran were men in their productive age. Early diagnosis and proper use of snake antivenins could be life-saving and should be encouraged.

Filicide is the term to describe the homicide of the child performed by one of the parents or both. Many different methods and devices may be used for these types of murders, for example, asphyxia, planned car accidents, stabbing by knife, battering, electricity, and so on. Most deaths due to electrocution are categorized as accidental in domestic and industrial environments. Murder by electrocution is reported very rarely. This case presents the murder of the child by his father in the way which is not usually applied in either filicide or homicide. The body of a dead eight-year-old boy was brought to the Legal Medicine Organization center for autopsy with the history of separated parents and father with bipolar disorder. The coroner noticed the boy`s toes wired directly to an electric socket at the scene of the crime so the deceased was referred for further evaluation. Although filicide by electrocution is a rare method, especially for familicide according to literature, it should be considered in such murders.

Alcohol detection is one of the most prevalent requests in forensic toxicology laboratories for medico-legal investigation. Interpretation of analytical toxicology results is important in deciding the cause and manner of death. The aim of the present case report is to introduce an unusually high blood alcohol level in a homicide victim and interpretation of analytical toxicology results considering crime scene investigation. In the present study, we report a case of a burnt body on which autopsy examination and forensic toxicology analyses were carried out. Autopsy examination showed several stab wounds in the neck and thorax regions. Forensic toxicology analysis results showed 1055 mg/dL ethanol and 71 mg/dL methanol in right heart blood using headspace gas chromatography. The leading cause of death was stab wounds. Burning seemed to be a tool for covering up the homicide. Use of alcoholic fire accelerant and contamination of the corpse with alcohol was the main reason to detect high blood alcohol levels. It is essential to determine ethanol in different sampling sites to reach a reliable and scientific interpretation of analytical toxicology results. Also, some important factors such as crime scene investigation should be considered in the interpretations of unusual forensic toxicology results.