RESUMO
The objective of the present publication was the description of the histological changes in the gastric structures revealed after the death of the victims of overcooling at the site of discovery of the corpse and at the stage of hospitalization. The stomachs of the subjects found at the place of death from overcooling in the absence of concomitant pathological findings were characterized by a diagnostic complex of pathomorphological changes peculiar to this form of death. The expression of separate signs forming the diagnostic complex decreased in the subjects with chronic atrophic gastritis and the concurrent structural reorganization of the organ. The high concentration of ethyl alcohol in the blood is associated with enhanced permeability of the vessels. The analysis of the relevant literature publications and the results of original morphological studies of the cases of death from overcooling at the stage of hospitalization after cessation of the influence of cold made it possible to elucidate dynamics of histological changes in the stomach. These data taken together with information from other sources allow to evaluate the lifetime effects of cold and the duration of its action under extreme conditions as well as to prognosticate the development of pathological processes.