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Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology
Published in: Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology 3/2016

01-09-2016 | Case Report

Integrating engineering principles into the medico-legal investigation of a rare fatal rollover car accident involving complex dynamics

Authors: Vincenzo M. Grassi, Flaminia Castagnola, Massimo Miscusi, Fabio De-Giorgio

Published in: Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology | Issue 3/2016

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Abstract

Rollover car accidents can be the result of forceful steering or hitting an obstacle that acts like a ramp. Mortality from this type of car accident is particularly high, especially when occupants are thrown out of the vehicle. We report a case of a 67-year‐old man who died after a rollover accident that occurred when he was driving a car equipped with a glass moonroof. He was found inside his car with his safety belt correctly fastened and the roof shattered. At autopsy, a wide avulsion injury of the head was observed, which was associated with an atlanto-axial dislocation and full‐thickness fracture of the cervical body and posterior facet joints of the seventh cervical vertebra. The data collected at the scene of the accident were integrated with the autopsy results to yield a forensic engineering reconstruction. This reconstruction elucidated the dynamics of the event and correctly ascribed the lesions observed at autopsy to the phases of the rollover. Afterward, an analysis of the scientific literature concerning rollover crash tests was conducted to understand why the driver sustained fatal injuries even though his seatbelt was properly fastened.
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Metadata
Title
Integrating engineering principles into the medico-legal investigation of a rare fatal rollover car accident involving complex dynamics
Authors
Vincenzo M. Grassi
Flaminia Castagnola
Massimo Miscusi
Fabio De-Giorgio
Publication date
01-09-2016
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology / Issue 3/2016
Print ISSN: 1547-769X
Electronic ISSN: 1556-2891
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12024-016-9796-7

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