Immunohistochemical insights into hypothermia-related deaths: a systematic review

Hypothermia occurs when core body temperature drops below 35 °C. The purpose of this review was to identify and analyze studies on the topic of hypothermia from an immunohistochemical perspective to determine robust markers of fatal hypothermia.

This systematic review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) reporting guidelines. It has been registered with Prospero (registration number: CRD42024572782).

In total, 2618 publications met the search criteria. A total of 63 duplicate articles were excluded and a further 2489 publications were excluded for not meeting the inclusion criteria, leaving 29 full-text articles. Furthermore, from the bibliographies of the included articles, four more publications were selected, which also respected the established inclusion and exclusion criteria. Only six studies identified a statistically significant correlation between immunohistochemical patterns and hypothermia-related deaths.

The existing literature examined appears fragmented and lacks robust statistical validation. Therefore, there is an evident need for more comprehensive and methodologically rigorous research to develop reliable diagnostic criteria.