An Uncommon Accident and Unusual Cause of Death—A Fatal Domestic Ram Attack

Abstract

Domestic animal attacks are not common; their fatal attacks are even rarer. Herein, a case of a 78-year-old woman attacked by a ram is presented. She sustained multiple head and chest injuries. The autopsy findings and the inspection of the scene revealed that the fatal aortic injury had been caused by direct force from the front, which subsequently caused a powerful anteroposterior chest compression, resulting in an incomplete tear by flexion and compression of the aortic arch. The aortic dissection propagated in both an ante- and retrograde direction, with intact adventitia. However, due to a rise in pressure in the formed false lumen, dissection propagated downward to the base of the heart, and further into the subepicardial adipose tissue, forming a subepicardial hematoma. This hematoma gradually compressed the proximal sections of the coronary arteries, impairing their filling, and producing a myocardial ischemia. In addition, circulation had probably been already disturbed by the right-sided pneumothorax, as well as a possible pneumomediastinum.

Death by Ram Attack: A Case Report from Greece and a Brief Review of the Literature

“…Nowadays, fatal injuries by ram attack appear to be extremely rare incidents, thus hindering the experience required for their medicolegal investigation. Only eleven cases are reported in the literature, in which death was attributed to blunt force injuries and one more, in which death was classified as an accident during shearing .…”

“…More specifically, injuries were found on the head, the neck, and the extremities of the victims . In 2013, a report from Serbia presented an attack from a 100‐kg hornless ram that inflicted multiple head and chest injuries in a 78‐year‐old woman . In 2015, another fatality by a hornless ram was reported, this time in Croatia.…”

Injuries and deaths caused by non-human primate attacks: Paediatric vulnerability

“…The nature of the attack is dependent upon the animal involved, the environment, the type of interaction that was occurring before and at the time of the episode and the characteristics of the victim. 2,3 These may include such diverse situations as deliberate predatory attacks by salt-water crocodiles on fishers, 4 territorial attacks on farmers from rams 5 and domestic attacks on children by household dogs. 6 The death of an infant after being dropped by a macaque monkey prompted a review of the literature and media reports to determine the types of injuries that may be caused by non-human primates and the nature of the fatal episodes.…”