Skip to main content
Key Specialties
Cardiology Diabetology Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatrics and Gerontology Gynecology and Obstetrics Hematology Infectious Disease Internal Medicine Nephrology Neurology Oncology Pediatrics Respiratory Medicine Rheumatology Surgery
Congress Coverage
2024 ACC Congress 2023 ESMO Congress 2023 EASD Congress 2023 ERS Congress 2023 ESC Congress 2023 EHA Congress 2023 ASCO Annual Meeting
Clinical Collections
Advances in Alzheimer’s

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

LIVE: Thursday 2nd May 2024, 18:00-19:30 (CEST)

Quality sleep is essential for health. But what happens to our brains when sleep patterns are disturbed? Join our experts to explore the interplay between sleep disruption and neurological diseases, and the questions that you need to be asking your patients to help you prevent the harmful effects of sleep deprivation.
ADVANCED SEARCH
Log in
Top
Japanese Journal of Radiology
Published in: Japanese Journal of Radiology 7/2014

01-07-2014 | Original Article

Postmortem lung features in drowning cases on computed tomography

Authors: Akihito Usui, Yusuke Kawasumi, Masato Funayama, Haruo Saito

Published in: Japanese Journal of Radiology | Issue 7/2014

Login to get access

Abstract

Purpose

We sought to compare postmortem chest computed tomography (CT) features of drowning cases with autopsy findings, and to classify these features.

Materials and method

We performed a retrospective analysis of high-resolution and multi-planar reconstruction chest CT images of drowning in 92 adults (54 men, 38 women; mean age 65.4 years) scanned before forensic autopsy. The average lung CT number was calculated from whole-lung images reconstructed on a 3D workstation. The statistically significant differences of CT numbers were assessed with an alpha level of 0.05.

Results

Postmortem chest CT image patterns were classified into six types: the two main types were ground-glass opacities with thickened pulmonary interstitium (n = 31), and a centrilobular distribution of ill-defined nodules along the airways (n = 38). Some cases were mixed type (n = 10). There were significant differences in CT numbers between each type. The remaining three types were consolidation (n = 5), emphysema and/or fibrosis (n = 4), and unclassifiable (n = 4).

Conclusion

Postmortem CT images of drowning cases can be classified into three major types with a few exceptions.
Literature
1.
World Health Organization Fact sheet N347. Drowning. Geneva, Switzerland: WHO; 2012.
2.
Spitz DJ. Investigation of bodies in water. In: Spitz WU, editor. Medico-legal investigation of death: guidelines for the application of pathology to crime investigation. 4th ed. Spring-field: Charles C Thomas; 2006. p. 846–81.
3.
Saukko P, Knight B. Immersion deaths. In: Saukko P, Knight B, editors. Knight’s forensic pathology. 3rd ed. London: Edward Arnold; 2004. p. 395–411.
4.
Christe A, Aghayev E, Jackowski C, Thali MJ, Vock P. Drowning-post-mortem imaging findings by computed tomography. Eur Radiol. 2008;18:283–90.PubMedCrossRef
5.
Persson A, Lindblom M, Jackowski C. A state-of-the-art pipeline for postmortem CT and MRI visualization: from data acquisition to interactive image interpretation at autopsy. Acta Radiol. 2011;52:522–36.PubMedCrossRef
6.
O’Donnell C, Woodford N. Post-mortem radiology––a new sub-speciality? Clin Radiol. 2008;63:1189–94.PubMedCrossRef
7.
Kawasumi Y, Kawabata T, Sugai Y, Usui A, Hosokai Y, Sato M, et al. Assessment of the relationship between drowning and fluid accumulation in the paranasal sinuses on post-mortem computed tomography. Eur J Radiol. 2012;81:3953–5.PubMed
8.
Verschakelen JA, De Wever W. Computed tomography of the lung. A pattern approach. Berlin: Springer; 2007.
9.
Levy AD, Harcke HT, Getz JM, et al. Virtual autopsy: two- and three-dimensional multidetector CT findings in drowning with autopsy comparison. Radiology. 2007;243:862–8.PubMed
10.
Kim KI, Lee KN, Tomiyama N, Johkoh T, Ichikado K, Kim CW, et al. Near drowning: thin-section CT findings in six patients. J Comput Assist Tomogr. 2000;24:562–6.PubMed
11.
Hunter TB, Whitehouse WM. Fresh-water near-drowning: radiological aspects. Radiology. 1974;112:51–6.PubMed
12.
Franquet T, Giménez A, Rosón N, Torrubia S, Sabaté JM, Pérez C. Aspiration diseases: findings, pitfalls, and differential diagnosis. Radiographics. 2000;20:673–85.PubMed
13.
Shiotani S, Kohno M, Ohashi N, Yamazaki K, Nakayama H, Watanabe K, et al. Non-traumatic postmortem computed tomographic (PMCT) findings of the lung. Forensic Sci Int. 2004;139:39–48.PubMed
14.
DiMaio VJ, DiMaio D. Forensic pathology. 2nd ed. Boca Raton: CRC Press; 2001.
15.
Funayama M, Aoki Y, Sebetan IM, Sagisaka K. Detection of diatoms in blood by a combination of membrane filtering and chemical digestion. Forensic Sci Int. 1987;34:175–82.PubMed
16.
Lunetta P, Modell JH. Macroscopical, microscopical, and laboratory findings in drowning victims: a comprehensive review. In: Tsokos M, editor. Forensic pathology reviews, vol. 3. Totowa: Humana Press; 2005. p. 3–77.
17.
Germerott T, Preiss US, Ebert LC, Ruder TD, Ross S, Flach PM, et al. A new approach in virtopsy: postmortem ventilation in multislice computed tomography. Leg Med (Tokyo). 2010;12:276–9.
18.
Germerott T, Flach PM, Preiss US, Ross SG, Thali MJ. Postmortem ventilation: a new method for improved detection of pulmonary pathologies in forensic imaging. Leg Med (Tokyo). 2012;14:223–8.
19.
Storto ML, Kee ST, Golden JA, Webb WR. Hydrostatic pulmonary edema: high-resolution CT findings. Am J Roentgenol. 1995;165:817–20.
20.
Gruden JF, Webb WR, Warnock M. Centrilobular opacities in the lung on high-resolution CT: diagnostic considerations and pathologic correlation. Am J Roentgenol. 1994;162:569–74.
21.
Webb WR. Thin-section CT of the secondary pulmonary lobule: anatomy and the image––the 2004 Fleischner lecture. Radiology. 2006;239:322–38.PubMed
Metadata
Title
Postmortem lung features in drowning cases on computed tomography
Authors
Akihito Usui
Yusuke Kawasumi
Masato Funayama
Haruo Saito
Publication date
01-07-2014
Publisher
Springer Japan
Published in
Japanese Journal of Radiology / Issue 7/2014
Print ISSN: 1867-1071
Electronic ISSN: 1867-108X
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11604-014-0326-9

Other articles of this Issue 7/2014

Japanese Journal of Radiology 7/2014 Go to the issue

Case Report

Synchronous infection of the aorta and the testis: emphysematous epididymo-orchitis, abdominal aortic mycotic aneurysm, and testicular artery pseudoaneurysm diagnosed by use of MDCT

Case Report

A case of gastric plexiform fibromyxoma: radiological and pathological findings

Case Report

A case of right double inferior vena cava with circumcaval ureter

Original Article

High-signal-intensity abnormalities evaluated by 3D fluid-attenuated inversion recovery imaging within the drainage territory of developmental venous anomalies identified by susceptibility-weighted imaging at 3 T

Original Article

Minimizing the acquisition phase in coronary CT angiography using the second generation 320-row CT

Acknowledgment

Acknowledgment