Postmortem Bacteriology in Forensic Autopsies—A Single Center Retrospective Study in Romania

Assessing O.K.N.V.I. RESIST‑5 performance for post‑mortem biological samples: A prospective pilot study

In recent years, the emergence of carbapenem-resistant strains has been increasing worldwide, including in Romania. Rapid tests for post-mortem examinations have been researched and currently have several applications. In the present study, we aimed to test the performance of O.K.N.V.I. RESIST-5 tests on impure post-mortem biological samples compared with a standard of pure cultures. When a death occurs during hospitalization and the issue of malpractice arises, the medico-legal practice would benefit from rapid tests applicable to post-mortem samples. Thus, detection and differentiation of the five targeted carbapenemases, namely oxacilinase-48, Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase, New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase, Verona integron-encoded metallo-β-lactamase and imipenemase, could be useful in guiding sampling for third-party microbiological assessment and could also be an asset from an epidemiological standpoint. The present prospective and observational pilot study included medico-legal autopsy cases performed at Mina Minovici National Institute of Legal Medicine (Romania) between June and July 2022. A total of two sets of O.K.N.V.I. RESIST-5 tests were performed: Test I, which was performed on-site from biological samples obtained during autopsy; and Test II, which was performed on pure cultures after sample inoculation and incubation. Total of 39 O.K.N.V.I. RESIST-5 rapid tests were performed on 19 biological samples, at least one sample per case. The O.K.N.V.I. RESIST-5 tests performed on-site showed an overall sensitivity of 92.3% with a 100% specificity. The results obtained through rapid tests using post-mortem impure samples were comparable to the results obtained from sample cultures with good sensitivity and specificity. Through post-mortem screening for carbapenem resistance, it would be possible to narrow down the number of cases that require further bacteriological assessment.

Infective Endocarditis in an Intravenous Drug User Leading to Myocardial Rupture and Hemopericardium

Introduction

Infective endocarditis (IE) is an infectious disorder of the innermost lining of the heart that can be fatal if left untreated. Infective endocarditis can spread beyond the endocardium into the myocardium and cause arrhythmias and myocardial wall rupture. Individuals with a history of intravenous drug use are at increased risk of developing IE and are at higher risk of dying, given their limited access to health care and adherence to treatment.

Methods

A medicolegal autopsy was performed on a 30-year-old woman with a history of intravenous drug use and recent assault after a hospital admission during which she did not survive resuscitation.

Results

The cause of death was found to be myocardial rupture in the setting of transmural IE. Postmortem imaging showed hemopericardium which was identified grossly with valvular vegetations in the heart. A ventricular wall defect along with transmural abscess formation was identified. Perimortem toxicology was positive for fentanyl, methamphetamine, and benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine. Postmortem blood cultures were positive for coagulase-negative Staphylococci, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida tropicalis, and Viridians group Streptococci. Postmortem tissue cultures taken from the heart was positive for Candida glabrata and Streptococcus mitis.

Discussion

The decedent had significant risk factors for IE, such as intravenous drug use and a prior admission to hospital for IE. The organisms identified on culture are in-keeping with the gross findings of IE and the terminal event of myocardial rupture was likely the result of tissue damage resulting from IE.