Page 48 - AEQUITAS VOL 2
P. 48
40
Case study 2: Intoxicated adult in disrupted
Case Studies
position leading to positional asphyxia
Case study 1: Positional asphyxia
without active restraint following an A 26-year-old male—intoxicated with
assault. alcohol—was discovered deceased in an
unusual and restrictive body position that
Deaths due to positional asphyxia are interfered with his ability to breathe
most often accidental, associated with normally. Although exact positioning details
alcohol and/or drug intoxication. A are not exhaustively described in the report,
19-year-old male is reported to have it is clear that the posture was inherently
been assaulted and placed in a head- unsafe and led directly to mechanical
down position in the back of a car, impairment of his pulmonary ventilation.
where he was later found dead. Brush Crucially, no external signs of trauma or
abrasions indicated that he had been violence were observed, underscoring how
dragged to the vehicle. The head and positional asphyxia can occur even without
right shoulder were wedged into the overt injury or restraint.
foot well with the body uppermost.
At autopsy, there was marked SCENE DESCRIPTION
congestion of the face, neck, and The individual, self-positioned after
upper chest with conjunctival consuming alcohol, due to intoxication,
ecchymoses, bruising of the face and assumed a body posture that restricted chest
scalp, focal subarachnoid movement and airflow. Scene investigation
hemorrhage, minor cerebral revealed there were no signs of struggle or
contusion, and diffuse cerebral third-party interference. Death was clearly
swelling with early hypoxic ischemic noted as accidental. Posture was wedged or
encephalopathy (HIE). Toxicology constrained; the report does not include
was negative. Death was attributed to photographs.
HIE resulting from the unusual
positioning of the body. Cases of AUTOPSY FINDINGS
positional asphyxia involving others External examination: no external
may not always include restraint, and injuries or significant marks were
when encountered, should initiate a seen(e.g. abrasions, bruises or ligature
careful evaluation of the possible marks)
events and lethal pathophysiological Internal examination: the conclusion
processes. states that the diagnosis is based solely
on the disruptive body posture in an
intoxicated individual.
