Precise survival time and physical activity after fatal left ventricle injury from sharp pointed weapon: a case report and a review of the literature

Survival time and physical activity following fatal injury are especially important during investigation of homicide cases and the estimation of a victim’s survival time and physical activity following a fatal injury from a sharp weapon is a commonly raised issue, particularly at trial. According to the literature, survival time and physical activity after cardiac damage are short-term estimates without high accuracy. We report the homicide case of a young man who died as a result of a left ventricle injury caused by a sharp pointed weapon. This case is based on evidence from a video surveillance camera that recorded the whole scene after the fatal injury: The victim showed an adapted physical activity for 38 s, although the left ventricle incision measured 2 cm. Despite several cases in the literature, it is not possible to correlate precisely the size of the wounds and the acting capability.