Experimental water injection into lungs using an animal model: Verification of the diatom concentration test to diagnose drowning

Kihara, Yuko; Makino, Yohsuke; Nakajima, Makoto; Tsuneya, Shigeki; Tanaka, Aki; Yamaguchi, Ryuhei; Torimitsu, Suguru; Hayama, Shin-ichi; Iwase, Hirotaro

doi:10.1016/j.forsciint.2021.110983

Cited by 7 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Previous studies reported drowning probabilities of 96% for L/D values >1 and even 100% for L/D values >2, while yet evincing limited conclusiveness between drowning and post-mortal immersion at values ≤1 [ 8 ]. Investigation of the cases 1–3, which all presented distinct classical drowning signs [ 23 , 24 ], achieved L/D values between 2.4 and 10.9, which therefore can be considered strong evidence for drowning [ 25 – 27 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Validation and optimization of the diatom L/D ratio as a diagnostic marker for drowning

et al. 2023

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If a dead body is discovered in water, it nearly always raises the question about the cause of death, often associated with the persistent problem to differentiate between a drowning incident and post-mortem immersion. In numerous cases, a reliable confirmation of death by drowning is often only possible by a combination of diagnoses obtained from autopsy and additional investigations. As to the latter, the use of diatoms has been suggested (and debated) since decades. Based on the consideration that diatoms are present in almost every natural waterbody and are unavoidably incorporated when water is inhaled, their presence in the lung and other tissues can provide evidence of drowning. However, the traditional diatom test methods are still subject of controversial discussion and suspected of erroneous outcome, predominantly through contamination. A promising alternative to minimize the risk of erroneous outcome seems to be disclosed by the recently suggested MD-VF-Auto SEM technique. Especially the establishment of a new diagnostic marker (L/D ratio), which represents the factorial proportion between the diatom concentration in lung tissue and the drowning medium, allows for clearer distinction of drowning and post-mortal immersion and is largely robust to contamination. However, this highly elaborated technique requires specific devices which are frequently unavailable. We therefore developed a modified method of SEM-based diatom testing to enable the use on more routinely available equipment. Process steps such as digestion, filtration, and image acquisition were thoroughly broken down, optimized, and ultimately validated in five confirmed drowning cases. Taking certain limitations into consideration, L/D ratio analysis provided promising results, even in cases of advanced decomposition. We conclude that our modified protocol indeed opens a way for a broader use of the method in forensic drowning investigation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Validation and optimization of the diatom L/D ratio as a diagnostic marker for drowning

et al. 2023

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“…Studies on larger samples are needed to further investigate the hypothesis that a consumption of alcohol and/or drugs may affect diatom analyses, and to further explore the association observed between the toxicological status and lung weight in fatal drownings. Future research should better take into account medical history as well as the diatom concentration in the drowning environment, as the ratio of diatom concentration in the organs to diatom concentration in water might be a marker of interest [ 15 , 26 – 28 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of the toxicological status on the diagnosis of fatal drowning

Poulain,

Mathieu,

Gouetta

et al. 2023

Int J Legal Med

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Drowning is the leading cause of death by accident of everyday life in people under 25 years of age. Xenobiotics are frequently involved in drowning cases but their influence on the diagnosis of fatal drowning has not been studied so far. This preliminary study aimed to assess the influence of an alcohol and/or a drug intoxication on the autopsy signs of drowning, and on the results of diatom analyses in drowning deaths. Twenty-eight autopsy cases of drowning including 19 freshwater drownings, 6 seawater drownings, and 3 brackish water drownings were prospectively included. Toxicological and diatom tests were performed in each case. The influence of alcohol and other xenobiotics on drowning signs and diatom analyses was assessed separately then in combination through a global toxicological participation score (GTPS). Diatom analyses showed positive results in lung tissue in every case. No significant association was found between the degree of intoxication and the diatom concentration in the organs, even after considering freshwater drowning cases only. The vast majority of the traditional autopsy signs of drowning were not significantly affected by the individual toxicological status either, with the exception of lung weight which tended to raise in case of intoxication, probably due to the pulmonary edema and congestion increase. Further research on larger autopsy samples is needed to confirm the results of this exploratory study.

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DiatomNet v1.0: A novel approach for automatic diatom testing for drowning diagnosis in forensically biomedical application

Zhang

Vieira

Cheng

et al. 2023

Computer Methods and Programs in Biomedicine

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Experimental water injection into lungs using an animal model: Verification of the diatom concentration test to diagnose drowning

Cited by 7 publications

References 25 publications

Validation and optimization of the diatom L/D ratio as a diagnostic marker for drowning

Validation and optimization of the diatom L/D ratio as a diagnostic marker for drowning

Influence of the toxicological status on the diagnosis of fatal drowning

DiatomNet v1.0: A novel approach for automatic diatom testing for drowning diagnosis in forensically biomedical application

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