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Makino Y, Kojima M, Inokuchi G, Motomura A, Arai N, Inoue H, Kabasawa H, Iwase H, Yajima D. Two medicolegal autopsy cases of multinodular and vacuolating neuronal tumor revealed by postmortem MRI. Leg Med (Tokyo) 2024; 69:102342. [PMID: 37914604 DOI: 10.1016/j.legalmed.2023.102342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2023] [Revised: 09/27/2023] [Accepted: 10/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023]
Abstract
The multinodular and vacuolating neuronal tumor (MVNT) is a recently recognized brain lesion. MVNT has a characteristic appearance in MRI images and is potentially epileptogenic. To the best of our knowledge, no report has yet described this pathological entity in the forensic medicine literature. We present two medicolegal autopsy cases where postmortem MRI (PMMR) was useful to detect this lesion. Case 1: a man in his 30s, with about a 7-year history of intractable epilepsy and known MVNT died suddenly. Although MVNT was not detected in the initial morphological evaluation during autopsy, PMMR of the formalin-fixed brain revealed the lesion in the left frontal lobe. Histopathology confirmed it as a MVNT. Case 2: a man in his 20s hanged himself to death. PMMR prior to autopsy revealed MVNT in his brain, and the diagnosis was confirmed by a detailed histopathological evaluation. In both cases, postmortem CT was not useful for evaluation. The cases suggested that MVNT can cause sudden, unexpected epileptic death, and pre- or post-autopsy PMMR may be useful to detect it.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yohsuke Makino
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, Japan.
| | - Masatoshi Kojima
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, Japan
| | - Go Inokuchi
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, Japan
| | - Ayumi Motomura
- Department of Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, International University of Health and Welfare, 4-3 Kozunomori, Narita, Japan
| | - Nobutaka Arai
- Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, 2-1-6 Kamikitazawa, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Inoue
- Department of Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, International University of Health and Welfare, 4-3 Kozunomori, Narita, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Kabasawa
- Department of Radiological Sciences, International University of Health and Welfare, 4-3 Kozunomori, Narita, Japan
| | - Hirotaro Iwase
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, Japan
| | - Daisuke Yajima
- Department of Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, International University of Health and Welfare, 4-3 Kozunomori, Narita, Japan
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Application of postmortem MRI for identification of medulla oblongata contusion as a cause of death: a case report. Int J Legal Med 2023; 137:115-121. [PMID: 36303078 DOI: 10.1007/s00414-022-02909-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Whiplash injury is common in traffic accidents, and severe whiplash is characterized by cervical spinal cord injuries with cervical dislocation or fracture, that can be diagnosed by postmortem computed tomography (PMCT), postmortem magnetic resonance (PMMR), or conventional autopsy. However, for cervical spinal cord injury without fracture and dislocation, PMMR can be more informative because it provides higher resolution of soft tissues. We report the case of a 29-year-old male who died immediately following a traffic accident, in which the vehicle hit an obstacle at a high speed, causing deformation of the bumper and severe damage of the vehicle body. PMCT indicated no significant injuries or diseases related to death, but PMMR showed patchy abnormal signals in the medulla oblongata, and the lower edge of the cerebellar tonsil was herniated out of the foramen magnum. The subsequent pathological and histological results confirmed that death was caused by medulla oblongata contusion combined with cerebellar tonsillar herniation. Our description of this case of a rare but fatal whiplash injury in which there was no fracture or dislocation provides a better understanding of the potentially fatal consequences of cervical spinal cord whiplash injury without fracture or dislocation and of the underlying lethal mechanisms. Compared with PMCT, PMMR provides important diagnostic information in forensic practice for the identification of soft tissue injuries, and is therefore an important imaging modality for diagnosis of whiplash injury when there is no fracture or dislocation.
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Chen Q, Chen X, Xu L, Zhang R, Li Z, Yue X, Qiao D. Traumatic axonal injury: neuropathological features, postmortem diagnostic methods, and strategies. Forensic Sci Med Pathol 2022; 18:530-544. [PMID: 36117238 DOI: 10.1007/s12024-022-00522-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has high morbidity and poor prognosis and imposes a serious socioeconomic burden. Traumatic axonal injury (TAI), which is one of the common pathological changes in the primary injury of TBI, is often caused by the external force to the head that causes the white matter bundles to generate shear stress and tension; resulting in tissue damage and leading to the cytoskeletal disorder. At present, the forensic pathological diagnosis of TAI-caused death is still a difficult problem. Most of the TAI biomarkers studied are used for the prediction, evaluation, and prognosis of TAI in the living state. The research subjects are mainly humans in the living state or model animals, which are not suitable for the postmortem diagnosis of TAI. In addition, there is still a lack of recognized indicators for the autopsy pathological diagnosis of TAI. Different diagnostic methods and markers have their limitations, and there is a lack of systematic research and summary of autopsy diagnostic markers of TAI. Therefore, this study mainly summarizes the pathological mechanism, common methods, techniques of postmortem diagnosis, and corresponding biomarkers of TAI, and puts forward the strategies for postmortem diagnosis of TAI for forensic cases with different survival times, which is of great significance to forensic pathological diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qianling Chen
- School of Forensic Medicine, Southern Medical University, South Shaitai Road #1023, Guangzhou, 510515, Guangdong, China
| | - Xuebing Chen
- School of Forensic Medicine, Southern Medical University, South Shaitai Road #1023, Guangzhou, 510515, Guangdong, China
| | - Luyao Xu
- School of Forensic Medicine, Southern Medical University, South Shaitai Road #1023, Guangzhou, 510515, Guangdong, China
| | - Rui Zhang
- School of Forensic Medicine, Southern Medical University, South Shaitai Road #1023, Guangzhou, 510515, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhigang Li
- Guangzhou Forensic Science Institute & Key Laboratory of Forensic Pathology, Ministry of Public Security, Guangzhou, 510442, China.
| | - Xia Yue
- School of Forensic Medicine, Southern Medical University, South Shaitai Road #1023, Guangzhou, 510515, Guangdong, China.
| | - Dongfang Qiao
- School of Forensic Medicine, Southern Medical University, South Shaitai Road #1023, Guangzhou, 510515, Guangdong, China.
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Moe HK, Limandvik Myhr J, Moen KG, Håberg AK, Skandsen T, Vik A. Association of cause of injury and traumatic axonal injury: a clinical MRI study of moderate and severe traumatic brain injury. J Neurosurg 2020; 133:1559-1567. [PMID: 31604329 DOI: 10.3171/2019.6.jns191040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2019] [Accepted: 06/25/2019] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The authors investigated the association between the cause of injury and the occurrence and grade of traumatic axonal injury (TAI) on clinical MRI in patients with moderate or severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). METHODS Data for a total of 396 consecutive patients, aged 7-70 years, with moderate or severe TBI admitted to a level 1 trauma center were prospectively registered. Data were included for analysis from the 219 patients who had MRI performed within 35 days (median 8, IQR 4-17 days) and for whom cause of injury was known. Cause of injury was registered as road traffic accident (RTA) or fall (both with respective subcategories), alpine skiing or snowboarding accident, or violence. The MRI protocol consisted of T2*-weighted gradient echo, FLAIR, and diffusion-weighted imaging scans. TAI lesions were evaluated in a blinded manner and categorized into 3 grades, hemispheric/cerebellar white matter (grade 1), corpus callosum (grade 2), and brainstem (grade 3). The absence of TAI was analyzed as grade 0. Contusions and mass lesions on CT were also registered. RESULTS Cause of injury did not differ between included and nonincluded patients. TAI was found in 83% of patients in the included group after RTAs and 62% after falls (p < 0.001). Observed TAI grades differed between the subcategories of both RTAs (p = 0.004) and falls (p = 0.006). Pedestrians in RTAs, car drivers/passengers in RTAs, and alpine skiers had the highest prevalence of TAI (89%-100%) and the highest TAI grades (70%-82% TAI grades 2-3). TAI was found in 76% of patients after falls from > own height (45% TAI grade 2-3), 63% after falls down the stairs (26% TAI grade 2-3), and 31% after falls from ≤ own height (12% TAI grade 2-3). Moreover, 53% of patients with TAI after RTAs and 68% with TAI after falls had cortical contusions or mass lesions on CT. CONCLUSIONS This prospective study of moderate and severe TBI is to the authors' knowledge the first clinical MRI study to demonstrate both the high prevalence and grade of TAI after most of the different types of RTAs, alpine skiing accidents, and falls from a height. Importantly, TAI was also common following more low-energy trauma such as falls down the stairs or from own height. Physicians managing TBI patients in the acute phase should be aware of the possibility of TAI no matter the cause of injury and also when the CT scan shows cortical contusions or mass lesions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans Kristian Moe
- 1Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim
| | - Janne Limandvik Myhr
- 1Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim
| | - Kent Gøran Moen
- 1Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim
- 2Department of Radiology, Nord-Trøndelag Hospital Trust, Levanger; and
| | - Asta Kristine Håberg
- 1Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim
- Departments of3Radiology and Nuclear Medicine
| | - Toril Skandsen
- 1Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim
- 4Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and
| | - Anne Vik
- 1Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim
- 5Neurosurgery, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
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Makino Y, Kojima M, Yoshida M, Motomura A, Inokuchi G, Chiba F, Torimitsu S, Hoshioka Y, Yamaguchi R, Saito N, Urabe S, Tsuneya S, Horikoshi T, Yajima D, Iwase H. Postmortem CT and MRI findings of massive fat embolism. Int J Legal Med 2019; 134:669-678. [PMID: 31375910 DOI: 10.1007/s00414-019-02128-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2018] [Accepted: 07/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To elucidate postmortem computed tomography (PMCT) and postmortem magnetic resonance (PMMR) imaging findings suggesting massive fat embolism. MATERIALS AND METHODS Consecutive forensic cases with PMCT and PMMR scans of subjects prior to autopsy were assessed. For PMCT, 16- or 64-row multidetector CT scans were used; for PMMR, a 1.5 T system was used. MRI sequences of the chest area included T2- and T1-weighted fast spin-echo imaging, T2*-weighted imaging, T1-weighted 3-dimensional gradient-echo imaging with or without a fat-suppression pulse, short tau inversion recovery, and in-phase/opposed-phase imaging. At autopsy, forensic pathologists checked for pulmonary fat embolism with fat staining; Falzi's grading system was used for classification. RESULTS Of 31 subjects, four were excluded because fat staining for histopathological examination of the lung tissue could not be performed. In three of the remaining 27 subjects, histology revealed massive fat embolism (Falzi grade III) and the cause of death was considered to be associated with fat embolism. CT detected a "fat-fluid level" in the right heart or intraluminal fat in the pulmonary arterial branches in two subjects. MRI detected these findings more clearly in both subjects. In one subject, CT and MRI were both negative. There were no positive findings in the 24 subjects that were fat embolism-negative by histology. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION In some subjects, a massive fat embolism can be suggested by postmortem imaging with a "fat-fluid level" in the right heart or intraluminal fat in the pulmonary arterial branches. PMMR potentially suggests fat embolism more clearly than PMCT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yohsuke Makino
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan. .,Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan.
| | - Masatoshi Kojima
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Maiko Yoshida
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Ayumi Motomura
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan.,Department of Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, International University of Health and Welfare, 4-3 Kozunomori, Narita, 286-8686, Japan
| | - Go Inokuchi
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Fumiko Chiba
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan.,Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Suguru Torimitsu
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan.,Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Yumi Hoshioka
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Rutsuko Yamaguchi
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Naoki Saito
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Shumari Urabe
- Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
| | - Shigeki Tsuneya
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Takuro Horikoshi
- Department of Radiology, Chiba University Hospital, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8677, Japan
| | - Daisuke Yajima
- Department of Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, International University of Health and Welfare, 4-3 Kozunomori, Narita, 286-8686, Japan
| | - Hirotaro Iwase
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan.,Department of Legal Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan
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