Russian Journal of Forensic Medicine
https://for-medex.ru/jour
<p>Peer-review medical journal.<br /><strong>Publish </strong>quarterly since 2015 in Open Access.<br /><strong>Editor-in-Chief</strong>: professor Vladimir A. Klevno, MD, PhD.<br /><strong>Indexing</strong>: Scopus, Russian Science Citation Index, Google Scholar, CyberLeninka, Ulrich's Periodical directory, Dimensions.<br /><strong>ISSN</strong> 2411-8729 (Print) <strong>ISSN</strong> 2409-4161 (Online)</p>
Eco-Vector
ru-RU
Russian Journal of Forensic Medicine
2411-8729
<p>Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:</p> <ol> <li>Authors retain copyright and grant the journal exclusive license to first publication.</li> <li>Authors are able to distribute the manuscript and/or the article in accordance with Self-Archiving policy of the journal (<a href="https://for-medex.ru/jour/about/editorialPolicies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">see details</a>).</li> <li>The manuscript can be accepted for publication only by decision of the Editor-in-Chief and the Editorial board of the journal in accordance with the Manuscript stelection policy of the journal (<a href="https://for-medex.ru/jour/about/editorialPolicies#custom-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">see details</a>).</li> <li>Published Article will be distributed in print and electronic version an will be available under subscription with Delayed Open Access or in Immediate Open Access under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/deed.ru" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CC BY-NC-ND 4.0</a>). The access model depends on the publisher's decision or is determined by a separate Open Access publishing agreement with the authors.</li> </ol> <p>An exclusive license for publication granted by authors allows the publisher to use the article in the following ways:</p> <ul> <li>Reproduction of the Article or its sections or parts, as well as the metadata of the Article in any languages, in any material form, including on paper and electronic media, as a separate work in the journal and/or databases (local or in the Internet) of the publisher and/or other persons, at the discretion of the publisher;</li> <li>Distribution of the Article or its sections or parts, as well as the metadata of the Article in any languages, on any medium as part of the journal and/or databases of the publisher or other persons, at the discretion of the publisher, or as an independent work around the world whether on Open-Access terms or for a fee without remuneration to the Author;</li> <li>Making the Article or any of its sections or parts, as well as the Article’s metadata in any languages, publicly available in such a way that any person can access the Article from any place, including via the Internet, and at any time of their own choosing;</li> <li>Granting permission/s for the use of the Article or its sections or parts, as well as its metadata in any languages, to third parties with notice to the Author made by posting relevant information on the journal’s website, without paying remuneration to the Author;</li> <li>Processing the Article (i.e., editing, correcting, annotating, tagging, translating to any languages, typesetting) and using the revised (translated) Article in the aforementioned ways.</li> </ul> <p>Other rights not directly transferred to the publisher under this License Agreement, including patent rights to any process, method etc., described by the Authors in the manuscript, as well as trademark rights, are reserved for the Authors.</p> <p>All the Copyright statements for authors are present in the standart Publishing Agreement (Public Offer) to Publish an Article in an Academic Periodical '<strong>Russian Journal of Forensic Medicine</strong>'.</p> <p>- <a href="/files/journals/1/doc/Copyrightagreement_final_eng_exclusive_v.2022.09.29.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOWNLOAD</a> the print-version of the License Agreement.</p> <div><details> <summary><strong>READ the details online</strong> (tap to see in details)</summary> <p><strong>Author’s license agreement (public offer) on the publication of an article in a scholarly journal </strong><br />“<strong>Russian Journal of Forensic Medicine</strong>”</p> <p>Eco-Vector, represented by its CEO Evgeniy Schepin and acting on the basis of the Charter (hereinafter referred to as the Publisher), on the one hand, offers an indefinite circle of persons (hereinafter referred to as the Author), and on the other hand, hereinafter jointly referred to as the Parties, to execute this agreement (hereinafter referred to as the Agreement) on the publication of scientific article (hereinafter referred to as the Article) in a scholarly journal “<strong>Russian Journal of Forensic Medicine</strong>” (further-the Journal) in accordance with the conditions stated below.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>I. General Provisions</strong></p> <ol> <li>This Agreement, in accordance with clause 2 of Article 437 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, is a public offer (hereinafter referred to as the Offer) requiring full and unconditional acceptance (Acceptance), which, in accordance with Article 438 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, means the sending by the Author of his/her materials by way of uploading the same to the online electronic system designed to accept manuscripts for consideration, and subsequently posted in the corresponding section of the Journal’s website on the Internet information and telecommunications network (hereinafter referred to as the Internet).</li> <li>In accordance with the current legislation of the Russian Federation regarding the observance of copyright on electronic information resources, all materials found in a website, including submitted and published in electronic journals, may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form (electronic or printed) without the prior written permission of the Publisher. Prior permission can be given by publishing an article in the open access with Creative Commons license. The journal requires license users to reference the original source, i.e., the publication, if the Author permits use of the public materials in the context of other documents.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>II. Terms used in the Agreement</strong></p> <ol> <li>“Author” refers to an individual (or individuals) whose creative work has led to the creation of the manuscript of a scientific Article, or to a representative of these persons.</li> <li>“Manuscript” is the result of intellectual activity in the form of a scientific work containing text, graphic and numerical data, audiovisual information, program code and other elements submitted by the Author for publication in the Journal; it is also the mean “a draft of an Article submitted by the Author to be published in the Journal”.</li> <li>“Offer” is the current agreement (an offer to the author for the publication of an Article in the Journal).</li> <li>“Publication” is the process of placement of an Article in the Journal.</li> <li>“Article” is the manuscript that has been published in the Journal (after successful selection, editing, type-setting, copyediting, proofreading, translation).</li> <li>“Acceptance of the offer” refers to the full and unconditional acceptance of the offer on the terms specified in paragraph 3 of this agreement (the Author accepts offer by submitting a Manuscript to the Publisher via the online electronic submission system on the Journal’s Internet website).</li> <li>“Journal” is a scientific peer-reviewed periodical registered as a mass media entity in the Roskomnadzor register of the Russian Federation and ISSN-center.</li> <li>“Submission” is an electronic appeal of the Author to the Publisher for the publication of an Article in the Journal by uploading the manuscript and accompanying materials to the online electronic submission system on the Journal’s Internet website).</li> <li>“Publisher” refers to Eco-Vector, which is the Publisher of the journal.</li> <li>Article metadata includes the information that are intended for inclusion in International Scientific Databases and search engines, namely the following: <ul> <li>title of the Article;</li> <li>information about each of the Authors (surname and first name; patronymic; place of work with the postal address indicated, contact information (e-mail));</li> <li>abstract;</li> <li>keywords;</li> <li>thematic rubricator: UDC (Universal Decimal Classification) or other library and bibliographic classification and subject indexes;</li> <li>list of references.</li> </ul> </li> <li>“Editorial board” is the creative team that prepares the journal for publication.</li> <li>“Parties” refers to the Author and the Publisher.</li> <li>“Author Guidelines” are the requirements for Articles published in the Journal, posted in the “For authors” section of the Journal’s Internet website.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>III. Subject of the Agreement (Offer)</strong></p> <ol> <li>Under this agreement, the Author grants the Publisher, free of charge for the entire period of validity in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, an exclusive license to use the Article created by the former for publication in the Journal, as well as the rights to use the article in the following ways: <ul> <li>Reproduction of the Article or its sections or parts, as well as the metadata of the Article in any languages, in any material form, including on paper and electronic media, as a separate work in Journals and/or databases (local or in the Internet) of the Publisher and/or other persons, at the discretion of the Publisher;</li> <li>Distribution of the Article or its sections or parts, as well as the metadata of the Article in any languages, on any medium as part of the Journal and/or databases of the Publisher or other persons, at the discretion of the Publisher, or as an independent work around the world whether on Open-Access terms or for a fee without remuneration to the Author;</li> <li>Making the Article or any of its sections or parts, as well as the Article’s metadata in any languages, publicly available in such a way that any person can access the Article from any place, including via the Internet, and at any time of their own choosing;</li> <li>Granting permission/s for the use of the Article or its sections or parts, as well as its metadata in any languages, to third parties with notice to the Author made by posting relevant information on the Journal’s website, without paying remuneration to the Author;</li> <li>Processing the Article (i.e., editing, correcting, annotating, tagging, translating to any languages, typesetting) and using the revised (translated) Article in the aforementioned ways.</li> </ul> </li> <li>Other rights not directly transferred to the Publisher under this Agreement, including patent rights to any process, method etc., described by the Author in the Article, as well as trademark rights, are reserved for the Author.</li> <li>The territory where the rights to the Article are allowed to be used is the whole world.</li> <li>The validity of this Agreement commences only if the manuscript of the Article is accepted for publication in the Journal and only from the moment of sending a notification of acceptance of the Article for publication to the Author from the official e-mail of the Journal.</li> <li>The rights are granted by the Author to the Publisher free of charge; the publication of the Article in the Journal does not entail any financial deductions to the Author.</li> <li>If the Publisher decides to reject the Submission or refuse to publish the Article in the Journal (i.e., retraction of the published Article), this Agreement becomes invalid. The decision to refuse publication will be sent to the Author at the e-mail address specified in the Submission.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>IV. Rights and Duties of the Parties</strong></p> <ol> <li>The Author guarantees that: <ul> <li>s/he holds the copyright the exclusive rights to the materials submitted to the Publisher as part of the manuscript of the Article;</li> <li>the rights granted to the Publisher under this agreement have not been previously transferred and will not be transferred to third parties in the future during the duration of the Agreement;</li> <li>the manuscript contains all references to the cited authors and/or publications (materials) provided for under the current copyright legislation;</li> <li>the Author has obtained all the necessary permissions for all information and other materials s/he holds no copyright to and that are used in the manuscript of the Article;</li> <li>the Article manuscript contains only materials permitted to be published in the open press in accordance with the current legislative acts of the Russian Federation, and its publication and distribution will not lead to the disclosure of secret (confidential) information (including state secrets);</li> <li>the Author has informed co-authors about the terms of this Agreement and has received their consent to execute this Agreement under the terms provided for in the Agreement.</li> </ul> </li> <li>The Author carries certain obligations under the terms of the Agreement: <ul> <li>s/he should prepare and submit the manuscript of the Article in accordance with the Author Guidelines posted on the Journal’s website;</li> <li>the Author should not use an electronic copy of the Article for commercial purposes and in other journal publications without the consent of the Publisher;</li> </ul> </li> <li>in the process of preparing a manuscript for publication, the Author is obligated to undertake the following: <ul> <li>make corrections to the text of the manuscript that have been marked by the peer-reviewers and accepted by the editorial board, and/or as necessary, upon the request of the Publisher and the editorial board, finalize the manuscript of the Article;</li> <li>revising and proofreading the manuscript of the Article in accordance with the editorial recommendations;</li> <li>suggest only the minimum of corrections to the type-setted (layout) Article.</li> </ul> </li> <li>The Author has the following rights and duties: <ul> <li>Use preprint or prior-to publication versions of an unpublished Article in the form and content accepted by the Publisher for publication in the Journal. Such prior-to-publish versions can be placed as electronic files on the personal websites of the Author (co-authors) or on the protected external websites of the employers of the Author; however, the Author cannot use the unpublished version(s) for commercial sale or for systematic external distribution by a third party (i.e., post on social media). The author or co-authors must, in turn, carry out certain duties, namely: <ul> <li>include the following warning in the prior-to-publish version: “This is prior-to-publish version of the article accepted for publication in (Journal’s name), © Eco-Vector (year)”;</li> <li>provide the corresponding electronic link to the Publisher’s website at <a href="https://journals.eco-vector.com/">https://journals.eco-vector.com/</a> and/or via the DOI.</li> </ul> </li> <li>Copy or transfer a copy of the published Article in whole or in part to colleagues free of charge for their personal or professional use, for the promotion of academic or scientific research, or for informational purposes of the Author’s employer.</li> <li>Use materials from a published Article in a book written by one of the co-authors.</li> <li>Use figures, tables and text excerpts from the Article for his or her (or co-authors’) own training purposes, or to include them in other published works in printed or electronic format by a third party, or to submit them in electronic format on an internal computer network, or on the public website of the Author (co-authors) or his/her employer.</li> <li>Include the Article in educational collections for use in the classroom, either for free distribution to the Author’s (co-authors’) students or in electronic format on a local server for access by students as part of the training course, as well as for internal training programs at the institution of the Author’s employer.</li> </ul> </li> <li>The Publisher, for its part, is obliged to: <ul> <li>publish the Author’s article in the Journal in printed and electronic form in accordance with the terms of this Agreement;</li> <li>if necessary, as so decided by the Journal’s editorial board, provide the Author with the proofreading of the manuscript and make a reasonable editing;</li> <li>provide to the Author the unlimited access to the final electronic version of the published Article (Version of Record) through the online electronic submission system on the Journal’s Internet website;</li> <li>comply with the Author’s rights as provided for by the current legislation, as well as protect them and take all necessary measures to prevent copyright infringement by third parties.</li> </ul> </li> <li>The Publisher has a right to: <ul> <li>conduct an expert evaluation of the manuscript (peer-reviewing and editorial evaluation) and invite the Author to make the necessary changes (revisions) to the manuscript;</li> <li>provide editing, copyediting, type-setting, proofreading, tagging, indexation and translation of the Article’s manuscript without altering the main content;</li> <li>in any subsequent authorized use by the Author (and/or other persons) of the Journal and/or Article (including any separate part or fragment thereof), require that a link to the Journal, Publisher, Author or other copyright holders, the title of the Article, the Journal’s volume/issue, and the year of publication be specified in the Journal;</li> <li>post preliminary and/or advertising information about the upcoming publication of the Article in the media and other information sources;</li> <li>make changes to the offer in accordance with the procedure established by the offer.</li> </ul> </li> <li>The editorial board of the Journal, headed by the editor-in-chief, has the exclusive rights to select and/or reject materials sent to the Journal editorial office for publications purposes. The manuscript sent by the Author to the Journal editorial office is not subject to return. The editorial board of the Journal does not enter into correspondence about rejection of submissions.</li> <li>In all cases not stipulated and not provided for in this agreement, the parties are obliged to be guided by the relevant current laws of the Russian Federation.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>V. Acceptance of the Offer and Execution of the Agreement. Terms of the Agreement</strong></p> <ol> <li>The Author accepts the Offer by submitting the manuscript on the Article to the Publisher through the electronic manuscript submission system on the Journal's Internet website.</li> <li>Acceptance of the offer by the author creates an Agreement in writing (Articles 438 and 1286.1 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation) on the terms of the offer.</li> <li>This Agreement is valid for the duration of the exclusive rights to the Article.</li> <li>When transferring (alienating) the exclusive right to the Article by the Author to a third party, this Agreement does not terminate.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>VI. Procedure for changing and terminating the Agreement</strong></p> <ol> <li>The Publisher has the right to unilaterally change the terms of this Agreement, in advance, at least 10 (ten) calendar days before the entry into force of the intended relevant changes, but with notice to the Author through the Journal’s website or by e-mail to the Author’s e-mail address specified in the Author’s Submission. The changes will take effect from the date specified in the relevant notification.</li> <li>If the Author rejects the changes to the terms of this Agreement, s/he has the right to notify the Publisher by sending a written notification through the online manuscripts submission system, making sure that the same is sent to the official e-mail address of the editorial office.</li> <li>This Agreement may be terminated prematurely, either by agreement of the parties at any time, or on other grounds provided for in this Agreement.</li> <li>The Author has the right to unilaterally withdraw from the execution of this Agreement by sending the Publisher a corresponding notification in writing at least 60 (sixty) calendar days in advance before the expected date of publication of the Article in the Journal.</li> <li>Termination of the Agreement for any reason does not release the parties from liability for any violation of the terms of the Agreement that occurred during the validity period.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>VII. Responsibility</strong></p> <ol> <li>The parties are responsible for non-fulfillment or improper fulfillment of their obligations under the Agreement in accordance with the current relevant legislation of the Russian Federation.</li> <li>All information provided by the Author must be reliable. The Author is expected to provide accurate and complete the information to the Publisher. When using false information received from the Author, the Publisher is not responsible for the negative consequences caused by his actions on the basis of the false information provided.</li> <li>With regard to the content of the Article, the Author is solely responsible for compliance with the requirements of the laws of the Russian Federation pertaining to advertising, copyright and related rights’ protection, protection of trademarks and service marks, and the protection of consumer rights.</li> <li>The Publisher does not bear any responsibility under the agreement: <ul> <li>for any actions that are a direct or indirect result of Author’s illegal actions;</li> <li>for any loss incurred by the Author, regardless of whether the Publisher could have foreseen the possibility of such losses or not.</li> </ul> </li> <li>The Publisher is released from liability for violation of the terms of the Agreement if such violation is caused by force majeure, including actions of state authorities (including the adoption of legal acts), fire, flood, earthquake, other natural disasters, lack of electricity and/or computer network failures, strikes, civil unrest, riots, etc.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>VIII. Dispute resolution</strong></p> <ol> <li>Disputes and disagreements will be resolved by the parties through negotiations, and in case of failure to reach an Agreement they will strive to seek resolution in accordance with the current legislation of the Russian Federation.</li> <li>If there are unresolved disagreements, the parties agree to resolve the disputes in court at the jurisdiction covered by the Publisher’s location in accordance with the current legislation of the Russian Federation.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>IX. Miscellaneous</strong></p> <ol> <li>All notifications, messages, requests, etc. (with the exception of documents that must be sent as originals in accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation) are considered received by the Author if they were transmitted (sent) by the Publisher through the Journal’s website (including by publication), fax, e-mail based on the address specified in the Submission, and other communication channels. The parties recognize the legal force of notifications, messages, requests, etc., transmitted (sent) by the above methods.</li> <li>In the event of claims against the Publisher related to the violation of the exclusive copyright and other intellectual property rights of third parties when creating an article or in connection with the execution of this Agreement by the Author, as well as in connection with the use of the Article by the Publisher in accordance with the Agreement, the author undertakes: <ul> <li>To immediately take measures to resolve disputes with third parties soon after receiving Publisher’s notification, and if necessary, enter into legal proceedings on the Publisher’s side and take all appropriate actions needed to exclude the Publisher from the list of defendants;</li> <li>To reimburse the publisher for the legal costs incurred and expenses and losses caused by the application of measures to secure the claim and execute a court decision, and the money paid to a third party for the violation of exclusive copyright and other intellectual property rights, as well as other losses incurred by the Publisher in connection with the Author’s non-compliance with the guarantees provided by them under this Agreement.</li> </ul> </li> </ol> <p> </p> <p><strong>X. Legal address and details of the Publisher</strong></p> <ul> <li>Eco-Vector</li> <li>Address: 191186, St. Petersburg, Aptekarsky Pereulok, 3 letter A, room 1N</li> <li>TIN: 7806423692; KPP: 784101001; OGRN: 1099847039907.</li> </ul> </details></div>
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Delayed deaths in near-hanging cases: An autopsy study of causes and associated factors
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/14218
<p><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong><strong> </strong>Near-hanging refers to individuals who survive a hanging injury for various durations. However, hospitalized patients succumb to complications resulting in delayed deaths.</p> <p><strong>AIM</strong><em>:</em> to evaluate various factors associated with causes of delayed death in near-hanging events and provide insight into the improvement of emergency services.</p> <p><strong>MATERIALS AND METHODS:<em> </em></strong>A prospective autopsy-based study was conducted at the Department of Forensic Medicine, M.S. Ramaiah Medical College, between 2012 and 2021. All near-hanging cases of hospitalized patients who later succumbed to complications and were subsequently subjected to medicolegal autopsy were included in the study.</p> <p><strong>RESULTS:</strong><em> </em>Victims were commonly women aged 19–30 years. More than half of them could reach the hospital within 30 min to 1 hour, and 47.8% of them were suspended for between 1–3 min. Moreover, 65% survived for more than a day. Partial hanging with a faint ligature mark was more common, and 95.7% of them had taken off from a platform with a falling height of <1 metre. Cerebral edema and consolidation were the common postmortem findings in the brain and lungs. Death was attributed to hypoxic encephalopathy in the majority of the cases.</p> <p><strong>CONCLUSION: </strong>Longer the duration of suspension, higher fall height, noncontact with the ground while being suspended, cerebral edema, hypoxia, pulmonary edema, hypotension, and need for resuscitation are predictors of fatal outcomes in near-hanging events.</p>
Jayanth S. Hosahally
Girish Y.P. Chandra
Basappa S. Hugar
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
373
381
10.17816/fm14218
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Profile of poisoning cases in a tertiary care centre in rural South India
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/14217
<p><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong><em> </em>Poisoning is the fourth most common cause of mortality in rural India. The commonest agents in India appear to be pesticides, sedatives, chemicals, alcohol, animal & plant toxins and household toxins. Our hospital receives an average of 20 to 25 poisoning cases every month.</p> <p><strong>AIMS:</strong><em> </em>To profile all cases of poisoning those are reported to casualty department at Dr. Chandramma Dayananda Sagar Institute of Medical Education and Research (CDSIMER); to study the types and frequency of poisoning cases admitted to the centre; to study the socio demographic associations of the poisoning cases.</p> <p><strong>MATERIALS AND METHODS:</strong><em> </em>Present study is a hospital record-based retrospective observational study of acute poisoning cases registered in the medicolegal register in the casualty of CDSIMER, which is a tertiary care centre situated in rural area near Harohalli, Ramanagara District, India.</p> <p><strong>RESULTS:</strong><em> </em>Males constituted 58% of the cases and 33.52% of the cases were in the age group of 21–30 years. 81.4% of the cases were able to reach hospital between 1 to 8 hours. 56% of the cases recovered and were discharged within 3 days. In 22 cases the duration of admission was more than 2 weeks as they went into complications. Organo phosphorus group of insecticide was the most common type of poison consumed constituting to 40.8% of the cases followed by Snake bite. Attempt to suicide (60.35%) was more common than accidental poisoning.</p> <p><strong>CONCLUSION:</strong><em> </em>Insecticides mainly Organophosphorus compound are the most common group of poisons which causes morbidity and mortality in rural Indian population especially in young adults between 21 to 40 years. Owing to the presence of forests in the region, Snake bite becomes the second largest type of poisoning. Suicide frequently prevails in the rural areas; financial problem is the leading cause for farmers to commit suicide.</p>
K. B. Geetha
Jayanth S. H.
Manju Prakash
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
383
390
10.17816/fm14217
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Bridging the gap: Assessing death certification competency in Bulgarian healthcare education
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/14219
<p><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong><em> </em>In Bulgaria, procedural protocols following a citizen’s death are governed by an intricate network of normative documents. Despite the presumed alignment between international and national guidelines, practical experiences reveal shortcomings in the proficiency of healthcare providers, particularly in cases involving prior medical interventions or systemic vulnerabilities.</p> <p><strong>AIM:</strong> This study aimed to assess the readiness of final-year medical students and early-career physicians in navigating death certification intricacies, including their responses, documentation precision, and postmortem procedures for bereaved families, with implications for national health statistics.</p> <p><strong>MATERIALS AND METHODS:</strong><em> </em>By employing a mixed-methods approach, this study distributed questionnaires to sixth-year medical students and practicing physicians, including those in emergency medicine centers and general practice. Data collection included paper-based and digital questionnaires, ensuring anonymity and ethical compliance. Statistical analysis, employing parametric (t-test) and nonparametric (Chi-square) tests, forms the basis for actionable recommendations and educational material development.</p> <p><strong>RESULTS:</strong> This study included 143 participants, of which 41% expressed apprehension about managing out-of-hospital deaths. Approximately 44% claimed familiarity with death certification regulations, with students displaying higher theoretical confidence but lacking practical knowledge. Remarkably, 74% of physicians never received formal training in death certification. Discrepancies in issuing death certificates, timing, and notification procedures were identified.</p> <p><strong>CONCLUSION:</strong> Findings reveal varying practices among physicians according to their specialties. Issues related to documentation, timing, and notification were prevalent. The study emphasizes the need for improved training, particularly for medical students. Emergency medicine doctors exhibited higher preparedness levels. Medical students and early-career physicians urgently require enhanced education in death certification preparedness. Incorporating these topics into medical curricula, offering specialized courses, and disseminating instructional materials can significantly enhance effectiveness. Future studies should assess the quality and accuracy of recorded causes of death, which affect healthcare statistics, public service, and legal procedures, underscoring the societal and administrative significance of death certification practices.</p>
Yanko G. Kolev
Tsvetelina Valentinova
Petko H. Stefanovski
Elka Tumbeva
Nikolay M. Mirochnik
Preslav-Geo Y. Kolev
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
391
401
10.17816/fm14219
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Individual age determination based on computed tomography knee analysis using artificial neural networks and computer vision: Preliminary results
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/11915
<p><strong>BACKGROUND:<em> </em></strong>Currently, studies have focused on the modernization of existing methods of forensic age assessment (bone and skeletal) through the active use of modern methods of medical imaging (e.g., computed tomography) and artificial intelligence for their analysis. This approach enables the creation of new methods for assessing biological age, which is characterized by increased accuracy and reproducibility.</p> <p><strong>AIM:</strong><em> </em>To develop and test an algorithm for predicting the biological age of an individual based on computed tomography analysis of the knee joint using artificial neural networks and computer vision.</p> <p><strong>MATERIALS AND METHODS:</strong><em> </em>This observational retrospective transverse (one time) study analyzed computed tomography scans (334) of the knee joint performed in the Departments of Radiation Diagnostics of the Priorov Central Institute for Trauma and Orthopedics, Vreden National Medical Center for Traumatology and Orthopedics, between 2018 and 2021. The study enrolled persons of both sexes aged 13–45 years. Cases of developmental abnormalities, knee injuries, signs of general connective tissue pathology were excluded. Research methods include the use of intelligent information technologies (a formalized set of mathematical and software solutions).</p> <p><strong>RESULTS:</strong> Based on the experiments conducted, an algorithm for assessing age according to the computed tomography scans of the knee joint has been developed. The main components of the developed system are as follows: a preprocessing module, an intelligent computing core, a data analysis module, a three-dimensional reconstruction module, a property extraction module, and a final age assessment module. The essence of the proposed method is the simultaneous use of artificial neural networks and clearly formalized mathematical procedures for calculating the properties of the epiphyseal line. To obtain the results and conduct primary experimental studies that confirmed the feasibility, correctness, and operability of the method, software using the YOLOv5 neural network was developed. The result of the error matrix analysis after training shows a probability of correct recognition of the order of 80%. Verification of experimental studies was performed on 46 cases. At present, the age estimation error is approximately 1 year for children and adolescents.</p> <p><strong>CONCLUSIONS:</strong> The experimental results have confirmed the adequacy of the age estimates obtained to the actual age of the individual and, consequently, the applicability of the proposed method in forensic medical institutions. The proposed method is currently implemented as a set of software components with subsequent manual integration of automatically calculated data. The plan was to supplement the database of computed tomography images to increase the training sample and the accuracy of age prediction.</p>
Dmitry D. Zolotenkov
Maksim I. Trufanov
Vladimir I. Solodovnikov
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
403
412
10.17816/fm11915
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Operator dependence of methods for obtaining metric characteristics of a face with real measurements and digital images
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/14221
<p><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong><em> </em>No studies in the scientific literature have established the operator dependence of portrait identification with the manual method of measuring facial parameters in subjects compared with measurements from digital images. The labor costs and accuracy of the measurements with these methods have not been established.</p> <p><strong>AIM:</strong><em> </em>To establish the operator dependence of methods of real-face measurement and measurement on digital images.</p> <p><strong>MATERIALS AND METHODS:</strong><em> </em>Facial parameters were instrumentally measured in 24 Caucasian women aged 19–20 years who were studying at the Professor V.F. Voino-Yasenetsky Krasnoyarsk State Medical University by four researchers independently of each other. The same type of standard digital photography of each subject’s face was taken in five projections, followed by a comparison of the results of real measurements with digital ones.</p> <p><strong>RESULTS:</strong><em> </em>When comparing the results of facial measurements obtained from digital images and manual method, an error was observed both in the measurements of one parameter by one researcher using two methods and in the excellent results obtained by other researchers. However, the greatest deviations were observed with the manual method, which may be due to the dependence of measurements on the operator.</p> <p><strong>CONCLUSION:</strong> With a streamlined and methodically verified approach to working with digital facial images, this technique is more accurate and less labor-intensive than real measurements because of the absence of operator dependence, which can be used in investigating crimes.</p>
Alexandra A. Yusupova
Fedor V. Alyabyev
Ekaterina V. Tsiupko
Alina P. Dyagileva
Kristina V. Sukhareva
Nazariy P. Chesalov
Galina A. Vashchenko
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
413
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10.17816/fm14221
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Establishment of the morphological features of stab injuries to the ribs caused by a knife with a blade spine thickness of 0.1 cm
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/15723
<p><strong>BACKGROUND:<em> </em></strong>The identification of all possible parameters and features of the tool that caused the injuries is of high significance for resolving specific forensic questions in the study of stab injuries to the ribs. However, data on the influence of blade spine thickness on the morphological features of stab injuries to the ribs are lacking.</p> <p><strong>AIM:</strong><em> </em>To determine the morphological features of stab injuries caused by a knife with a blade spine thickness of 0.1 cm at various angles of impact relative to the lamellar structure of the rib.</p> <p><strong>MATERIALS AND METHODS:</strong><em> </em>Experimental works were performed. Injuries were inflicted perpendicularly to the plane of the rib, to a depth of 5.4 cm, with a knife having a blade spine thickness at the penetration level of 0.1 cm. The study analyzed the anterior sections of ribs IV–VI of individuals of both sexes, predominantly male, aged 18–59 years, which is based on an experimental literature review of cutting and stubbing injuries. In total, 60 experiments were conducted, with 20 injuries each inflicted longitudinally, obliquely, and transversely on the rib lamellar structure. The results of the macroscopic observations were recorded and considered for subsequent interpretation.</p> <p><strong>RESULTS:</strong> In the macroscopic examination of injuries inflicted at various angles to the lines of the compact layer’s lamellar structure, linear-slit-shaped injuries were registered on the external compact plate. When oriented longitudinally in relation to the long axis of the bone, arcuate slit-shaped injuries were also observed. When a split crack was formed in the blade spine zone, a crack formed from one of the corners of the blunt end of the injury, extending longitudinally and obliquely along the bone’s lamellar structure, with some deviations toward the edge of the bone nearest to the injury. In transverse alignment of the injury to the long axis of the bone, the split crack morphologically corresponded to a fracture in bending deformation, gravitating toward the rib edge. The area influenced by the blade spine showed no macroscopic signs of abrasion of the compact or spongy bone. The blunt end of the injury had a round shape. On the internal compact plate, the shape of the injuries more frequently appeared slit-like, and in some cases serrated, due to the bulging of compact bone areas.</p> <p><strong>CONCLUSION:</strong><em> </em>The study identified significant specific morphological features of stab injuries to the ribs caused by a knife with a blade spine thickness of 0.1 cm, taking into account the lamellar structure of the bone tissue, which allows us to draw conclusions about the knife blade spine thickness.</p>
Tatiana V. Potankina
Aleksandr V. Maksimov
Oleg V. Lysenko
Maksim A. Kislov
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
421
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10.17816/fm15723
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Examinations of medical cases conducted in the Bureau of Forensic Medical Examination of the Tambov region
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/693
<p><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong><em> </em>Over the past 5 years, the number of commission examinations on improper provision of medical care by the Bureau of Forensic Medical Examination of the Tambov Region has increased. These examinations were performed to identify defects in the provision of medical care and determine their effect on an unfavorable outcome for the patient.</p> <p><strong>AIM:</strong><em> </em>To analyze and evaluate forensic medical examinations performed at the Tambov Regional Bureau of Forensic Medicine in so-called medical cases.</p> <p><strong>MATERIALS AND METHODS:</strong><em> </em>To identify medical specialties with the most frequent cases of inadequate medical care, which are the direct cause of unfavorable outcomes, an analysis of examinations was conducted for 2017–2021. The study included examinations performed from both the Tambov region and other regions.</p> <p><strong>RESULTS:</strong><em> </em>The number of cases of inadequate provision of medical care, for which the examination confirmed a cause-and-effect relationship with an unfavorable outcome, remains approximately at the same level throughout 2017–2021, and the largest number of defects in the provision of medical care were identified in the profile “obstetrics and gynecology.” However, the identified defects in the provision of medical care do not directly correlate with the number of examinations prescribed.</p> <p><em><strong>CONCLUSION:</strong> The analysis of medical cases showed that the number of examinations in which a direct causal link was established between defects in the provision of medical care and adverse outcomes remained low annually (not more than 9%). The largest number of defects in the provision of medical care was found in the profile “obstetrics and gynecology,” which relates to defects in diagnosis and treatment.</em></p>
Andrey V. Bestolchenkov
Leonid M. Kurzin
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
429
438
10.17816/fm693
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Shifting blame from the actions of the accused to medical professionals
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/14224
<p>A constant, clear trend is observed toward the appointment of forensic medical examinations in criminal and civil claims to healthcare institutions and individual medical workers. In some cases, criminal cases were initiated against medical workers without sufficient grounds. In their grief, relatives are not always able to objectively assess the actions of medical workers, which is often the reason for contacting investigative and judicial instances. Lawyers also support them in this. Often, medical workers receive complaints because they do not know how to properly explain to the patient and relatives the complexity of the situation and insist on hospitalization. All this is taken into service by lawyers, including medical professionals. Thanks to their actions, the prosecutor’s office, investigation, and courts are forced to do unnecessary and not always necessary work. All the above has become more often manifested during the investigation and trials to mitigate the guilt of the accused in criminal cases that harm health. The defendant or the representative of the defense declares that the consequences of the injury caused to the victim or the death of the victim are the result of the improper actions of medical workers, that is, the victim received inappropriate medical care. Explaining the purpose pursued by these people is difficult. However, such statements only lead to a delay in investigative actions and trials, appointment of additional, and sometimes repeated, forensic medical examinations, including commissions. In court hearings, not only forensic medical experts who conducted examinations are called witnesses to the incident but also medical workers. The presented work provides an expert observation of the death of a 4-year-old child. During the investigation and trial, the issue of inappropriate medical care arose, and a forensic medical examination commission was appointed. The forensic medical examination revealed that the child received appropriate medical care and had no connection with bodily harm.</p>
Evgeny Kh. Barinov
Svetlana G. Voevodina
Andrey E. Barinov
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
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Death following COVID-19 vaccination: A case report
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/13497
<p>Vaccines are necessary to reduce the mortality and morbidity of infectious diseases. It has played a vital role in the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Different types of vaccines have been developed to combat the pandemic. Adverse events following immunization including anaphylaxis have been reported for all types of COVID-19 vaccine. Anaphylaxis is common in a person who has a history of allergic reactions. Adverse reactions develop within minutes or a few hours after vaccination. Thus, in India, vaccine recipients are made to stay in the medical facility for 30 min for observation.</p> <p>Herein, we report the case of a 23-year-old woman who succumbed after 24 hours of taking COVISHIELD ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 Corona Virus Vaccine (recombinant). She did not have any symptoms after vaccination during her observation at the medical facility and did not have a history of allergic reactions. She was brought dead to M.S. Ramaiah Hospital, and the autopsy revealed pulmonary edema. Antibodies to COVID-19, inflammatory markers, serum IgE, and coagulation indicators in the postmortem blood sample were high. The cause of death was attributed to a delayed allergic reaction to COVISHIELD vaccine. Newer vaccines can cause fatal allergic reaction, sometimes later than expected, even when cutaneous reactions may not be present.</p>
Jayanth S. Hosahally
Varsha Patil
Girish Y.P. Chandra
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
447
455
10.17816/fm13497
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Possibilities of identity identification during comprehensive examination of bone remains: A case report
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/15174
<p>One of the most difficult types of research conducted in the forensic department of the Bureau of Forensic Medical Examination is the identification of individuals by bone remains. When examining discovered bone remains, the first stage includes the tasks of determining the belonging of bones to a person and then determining the racial identity, sex, age, and growth of an individual. The set of established characteristics plays a decisive role in further search activities and identification of specific persons. This article presents an actual case. Human bone remains were found in the forest, which was established to belong to a white man. The victim was most likely 173–183.5 cm tall. The anatomical and morphological features of the bones correspond to the age of 49–56.5 years. Further, an identification examination was conducted with the study of radiological images of citizen N (52 years old) using graphic identification algorithms. The results established that the bone remains belong to citizen N. The above case demonstrates the possibilities of identity identification in a comprehensive study of bone remains and confirms the relevance of the problem of identifying unidentified corpses in forensic medicine. However, even today, no specific algorithm has been established for identifying the identity of a corpse in a particular situation, which creates additional difficulties in choosing the most correct method (s). Further modernization and improvement of methods for identifying the identity of unidentified corpses is required, and the search for new, simpler, more accessible and objective research methods has both scientific and significant practical interest.</p>
Igor A. Tolmachev
Olga S. Lavrukova
Аleksandr V. Antipov
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
457
464
10.17816/fm15174
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About teeth in forensic medicine: 120 years since G.I. Vilga defended Russia’s first doctoral dissertation on forensic dentistry
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/15596
<p>1923 marked the 120th anniversary of the defense of the doctoral dissertation “On Teeth in Forensic Medicine” by the outstanding Russian odontologist Gilyariy Ivanovich Vilga. The dissertation included an extensive review of foreign literature and the results of his research performed on 160 young healthy men (soldiers) using hand-made instruments.</p> <p>The work, performed at the junction of odontology and forensic medicine, was the first in Russia to analyze traumatic dental injuries (dislocations and fractures) from this point of view, describe methods of identification of a person by odontological status, methods of studying bite wounds, and approaches to forensic examination of dental and dental technique errors. For many years, this work remained the only manual for odontologists and forensic experts in Russia.</p> <p>Many provisions of the doctoral dissertation of G.I. Vilga “About teeth in forensic medical relation” have not lost their relevance even today; all this certainly allows us to consider G.I. Vilga as the founder of domestic forensic dentistry.</p>
Konstantin A. Pashkov
Evgeny Kh. Barinov
Vladimir A. Bondar
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
465
472
10.17816/fm15596
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Book by V.A. Klevno, V.V. Frolov and I.A. Frolova “Forensic medical assessment of traumatic brain injury” as an addition to the textbook on forensic medicine: Review
https://for-medex.ru/jour/article/view/14222
<p>This review contains an overview of the textbook “Forensic medical assessment of traumatic brain injury” published in “Practical Medicine” by V.A. Klevno, V.V. Frolova, and I.A. Frolova. The review emphasized the importance of the peer-reviewed publication for modern medicine and content of the main sections devoted to the epidemiology of traumatic brain injury, revealed the main mechanisms of traumatic effects for causing traumatic brain injury and brain damage both with well-studied impression, compression, inertial trauma, and with impulse action, and emphasized the importance of defining the concept of traumatic brain injury, disclosure, and systematization of the concept of “damaging factors.” set out in the first five sections. The review also noted the importance of practical forensic experts’ knowledge of traumatic isolated subdural hematoma and chronic subdural hematoma, including the pathogenesis of its development and macroscopic signs in Sections 6 and 7 of the textbook. The review also evaluated the important role of practical recommendations on the rules for the collection and referral of biological materials for forensic histological examination, examples of the design of a forensic medical diagnosis, a medical death certificate, and conclusions for various types of traumatic brain injury. A detailed list of literary sources is provided, which presents the names of the most authoritative experts on the problem under consideration, as well as a glossary that is important for the unification and uniform understanding of the terms and concepts used. The review emphasizes the high quality of the book’s design, convenience for readers of the chosen publication format, and rich color schemes and illustrations. The analysis shows that the reviewed textbook contains the main information on traumatic brain injury and intracranial hemorrhages to date, which gives readers a full understanding of this problem, interests them with the need to understand complex and controversial issues and study the works referred to by the authors, which will undoubtedly improve the understanding of the complex mechanisms of various types of traumatic brain injury and the quality conducted forensic medical examinations. The textbook is extremely relevant, modern, and designed at a high level and contains comprehensive information for the training processes and use in the work of most medical specialists. The review concluded with a statement of hope that Vladimir Alexandrovic et al. will not stop there and will release a full-fledged manual on the forensic diagnosis of traumatic brain injury, with a more detailed classification and content that meets modern scientific and practical needs.</p>
Alexander A. Kanibolotskiy
Copyright (c) 2023 Eco-Vector
2023-12-15
2023-12-15
9 4
473
478
10.17816/fm14222