Sexual Abuse-Current Medico-legal, Forensic and Psychiatric Aspects

Abstract Violence against women and minors is a worldwide problem that has not yet been sufficiently acknowledged. There are many obstacles especially when sexual abuses have to be evaluated. These problems are present both when victims of sexual abuse are evaluated and when sex offenders are dealt with, especially when the offenders are juvenile sex offenders (JSO). These issues give cause for great concern about prognosis, and the resulting psychosocial implications, and call for a special effort from the scientific community in identifying appropriate prevention and treatment methods. This chapter is divided into two parts. The first part deals with the forensic and psychiatric features, such as diagnostic and therapeutic/rehabilitative strategies for JSO, while the second part analyzes the legal–medicine aspects related to rape/sexual assault in a European context

Supraorbital morphology and social dynamics in human evolution

Uniquely, with respect to Middle Pleistocene hominins, anatomically modern humans do not possess marked browridges, and have a more vertical forehead with mobile eyebrows that play a key role in social signalling and communication. The presence and variability of browridges in archaic Homo and their absence in ourselves have led to debate concerning their morphogenesis and function, with two main hypotheses being put forward; that browridge morphology is the result of the spatial relationship between the orbits and the braincase, and that browridge morphology is significantly impacted by biting mechanics. Here we virtually manipulate browridge morphology of an archaic hominin (Kabwe 1), showing that it is much larger than the minimum required to fulfil spatial demands and that browridge size has little impact on mechanical performance during biting. Since browridge morphology in this fossil is not driven by spatial and mechanical requirements alone, the role of the supraorbital region in social communication is a potentially significant factor. We propose that conversion of the large browridges of our immediate ancestors to a more vertical frontal in modern humans allowed highly mobile eyebrows to display subtle affiliative emotions

Avaliação da hemorragia feto-materna em puérperas com indicação para ministração de imunoglobulina anti-D Evaluation of fetomaternal hemorrhage in postpartum patients with indication for administration of anti-D immunoglobulin

Avaliamos a ocorrência da hemorragia feto-materna entre 343 puérperas que receberiam profilaxia da aloimunização Rh com emprego de imunoglobulina anti-D. Realizamos o teste de roseta para triagem dos casos que necessitariam determinação quantitativa do volume de sangue fetal transferido para circulação materna, que foi então apurado pelo teste de Kleihauer-Betke (K-B). O teste de roseta apresentou resultado positivo em 22 casos (6,4%). Em cinco dessas amostras o teste de K-B não apontou hemorragia feto-materna (falso positivo do teste de roseta de 1,45%) e noutra a leitura do teste não foi conclusiva. Tivemos oito casos com volume apurado de hemorragia feto-materna < 10ml (2,3%), seis com hemorragia feto-materna entre 10 e 30ml (1,7%) e duas puérperas apresentaram transferência sangüínea feto-materna maior que 30ml (0,58%), necessitando suplementação além da dose padrão de anti-D. O teste de roseta dispensou 93,6% das pacientes da avaliação adicional da hemorragia feto-materna por método quantitativo.<br>This study evaluated fetomaternal hemorrhage (FMH) in 343 postpartum patients who required prophylaxis of Rh alloimmunization with anti-D immunoglobulin. The rosette test was applied to screen for patients needing quantitative determination of fetal blood transferred from the maternal circulation, which was then measured by the Kleihauer-Betke test (K-B). The rosette test was positive in 22 cases (6.4%). In five of these cases, K-B did not show fetomaternal hemorrhage (a 1.45% false-positive rate for the rosette test), and in one case the test was inconclusive. There were 8 cases with FMH < 10ml (2.3%), 6 cases with FMH from 10 to 30ml (1.7%), and two cases with FMH > 30ml (0.58%), requiring a supplementary dose of anti-D. The study concludes that following the rosette test, additional evaluation of FMH using a quantitative test was unnecessary in 93.6% of the cases