Unique thermal destruction of the body following suicidal burning

Hyoid Bone Fracture Pattern Assessment in the Forensic Field: The Importance of Post Mortem Radiological Imaging

Post mortem hyoid bone fracture findings may be attributable to various factors, including both the onset of acute mechanical asphyxia as it happens in manual strangulation and in charred corpses. In forensic practice, the discovery of corpses burned after death to hide their real cause of death is not uncommon: in these cases, the diagnostic challenge is even greater, as the action of flames is capable of both masking previously generated lesions and/or generating new ones, as occurs for hyoid bone fractures. The case concerns a 76-year-old man found charred in his bedroom. Almost complete body charring made it impossible to evaluate any external damage. Post mortem computed tomography (PMCT) was performed, and an evident bilateral fracture of the greater horn of the hyoid bone was detected. Although the absence of typical charring signs had steered the diagnosis towards post mortem exposure to flames, PMCT proved to be very useful in increasing the accuracy in correctly determining the cause of death. In particular, making use of Maximum Intensity Projection (MIP) hyoid bone reconstructions, it was possible to measure the medial dislocation angle of the fracture fragments and then to establish the applied direction of force, which acted in a lateral-medial way. A manual strangulation diagnosis was confirmed. The increasing importance of performing post mortem radiological exams as a corollary for conventional autopsy has been further confirmed.

[Christmas with Charles Dickens - The Man of Letters as Syndrome-Spotter and Good Moralist]

Charles Dickens, as a writer, was also a great master of patient observation. He described more than 40 syndromes, some of which were named after characters and titles of his literary works. Within these he often referred to the connection between illness, poverty and social misery. Some of his descriptions have withstood the litmus test of time and are still used in today's medicine: Amongst these are the characters Frederick, Little Dorrit's uncle, who suffers from Parkinson's disease, Fat Joe after whom the Pickwick-syndrome was named, Tiny Tim who is beaten with Pott's disease, Ebenezer Scrooge, a victim of posttraumatic embitterment disorder, and Mr. Krook who dies from spontaneous human combustion. Charles Dickens loved animals, and he was a member and supporter of The Royal Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals and actively engaged in public activities against vivisection. Furthermore he explicitly cared for children, and when his novel "Oliver Twist" appeared, the begging children received more alms, and the government improved the poor houses. Finally, there is probably no other author who has portrayed the power of Christmas so sensitively and impressively. Dickens hoped that in these days, just before the turn of the year, personal transformations would take place and redemption would be experienced as a result of new insights. For such transformations, he was convinced that man occasionally needs external stimuli.