A case of fatal tracheal compression in a patient with Hashimoto's disease under the setting of previous tracheostomy

This autopsy case involved a woman in her 60 s with a history of temporal tracheostomy. During an event in which her son allegedly experienced an epileptic seizure, he grasped the woman around the upper chest for several moments. The woman then experienced breathing difficulties, lost consciousness and died. Postmortem computed tomography revealed a pinhole-like tracheal narrowing at the level of the tracheostomy encircled by the thyroid. Autopsy revealed a modestly enlarged thyroid gland due to previously undiagnosed Hashimoto's disease and an old fracture in a tracheal ring indicating that the trachea had been compressed by the thyroid. Hashimoto's disease rarely causes sudden death through systemic endocrine disturbance, but this case may illustrate that against a background of previous tracheostomy that mechanically weakens the trachea, enlargement of the thyroid (goiter) as a local effect of the disease can also cause sudden death

Usefulness of 2D fusion of postmortem CT and antemortem chest radiography studies for human identification.

To determine the feasibility of human identification through the two-dimensional (2D) fusion of postmortem computed tomography (PMCT) and antemortem chest radiography

Predictive factors for hyperglycaemic progression in patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder

Background: Patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder have a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Aims: To identify predictive factors for hyperglycaemic progression in individuals with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder and to determine whether hyperglycaemic progression rates differ among antipsychotics in regular clinical practice. Method: We recruited 1166 patients who initially had normal or prediabetic glucose levels for a nationwide, multisite, l-year prospective cohort study to determine predictive factors for hyperglycaemic progression. We also examined whether hyperglycaemic progression varied among patients receiving monotherapy with the six most frequently used antipsychotics. Results: High baseline serum triglycerides and coexisting hypertension significantly predicted hyperglycaemic progression. The six most frequently used antipsychotics did not significantly differ in their associated hyperglycaemic progression rates over the 1-year observation period. Conclusions: Clinicians should carefully evaluate baseline serum triglycerides and coexisting hypertension and perform strict longitudinal monitoring irrespective of the antipsychotic used

Conventional diatom testing using strong acid: (II) Number and types of diatoms detected in closed organs and lungs of 80 autopsy cases using only new Kjeldahl flasks

Citation: Sonoda A, Kakizaki E, Shinkawa N, Matsuda H, Yukawa N. Conventional diatom testing using strong acid: (II) Number and types of diatoms detected in closed organs and lungs of 80 autopsy cases using only new Kjeldahl flasks. Forensic Sci Int. 2022 Dec;341:111510. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2022.111510. Epub 2022 Nov 1. PMID: 36399935