[The reconstruction of gunshot circumstances by means of situational forensic medical expertise].

The authors discuss the objective potential of situational forensic medical expertise for the determination of the direction and the distance of a gunshot as well as the position of the gun in the shooter's hand. The use of fundamental theoretical propositions determining the essence of the form of expertise being considered is illustrated by an example from forensic medical practice.

[About some features of formation of "spots of Vishnevsky" in general hypothermia].

The article describes the features of formation of "spots of Vishnevsky", in general hypothermia. It is proved that the wedge shape of hemorrhages in the gastric mucosa caused by swelling and discrepancy of the paries of stomach pits with the filling of forming wedge-shaped cavity with blood from the arrosive capillaries. It is noted that the dynamics of accumulation of PAS-positive material in the gastric pits in the gastric mucosa in case of total of hypothermia is directly dependent on the growth of intracellular acidosis and disintegration of plasmolemma of parietal cells.

[Characteristic of injuries inflicted by a blank gunshot].

The analysis of the data published in the special literature indicates that forensic-medical aspects of the injuries inflicted by blank shots fired from a variety of small-arms weapons remain poorly known or virtually unexplored. Despite considerable variability of such injuries, their forensic-medical examination should include three basic components, viz. the proof of the absence of the injurious action of the shot, differential diagnostics of the consequences of injuries attributable to each traumatic factor of the shot, and experimental simulation of the damages to the human body and the clothes taking into account concrete models of the weapons and the blank cartridge.

[Expert reconstruction of the true circumstances of the shooting of the Emperor Nikolai II, members of his family, and those who accompanied them into exile at Ekaterinburg].

Analysis of the materials of the criminal case, historical, archive, and forensic medical documents permitted for the first time to reconstruct the circumstances of the shooting of Emperor Nikolai II, members of the royal family, and those who chose to accompany them into exile in the house of the engineer N.N. Ipatiev, Ekaterinburg, on the night of 16-17th July (Grigorian calendar) 1918. The results of the study allowed the true picture of the assassination to be reconstructed including the mutual positions of the victims and the executors in the semi-basement room No 2, the total number of participants, the number and direction of shots, the types of the weapons used, and the sequence of actions of each person involved in the event. It was shown, that in the beginning most shots had been fired at the emperor and tsarevich Alexei.

[The current state of the organizational component of the personality identification procedures for the unrecognized casualties of emergency situations].

This paper reports the results of analysis of organizational problems related to personality identification of unrecognized casualties in a variety of emergency situations. The necessity of purpose-oriented introduction of high-technology methods into the practical work of forensic medical experts is emphasized. The priority of the organizational component in the interdepartmental interactions during joint expertise actions at the sites of emergency situations is substantiated. The specific features of injuries in unrecognized subjects who died or suffered in emergency situations are considered with reference to the latter's peculiar conditions. The authors discuss prospects for the further development of organizational and legal basis of research for the purpose of personality identification with the use of the database of human medico-biological characteristics as envisaged by the current legislation.

[On the state of the budgetary funding of government forensic medical expert institutions in the Russian Federation].

The data on the budgetary funding of state-owned forensic medical bureaus in the Russian Federation for the period from 2005 to 2008 were collected and analysed. The results of the overall estimation and parameters characterizing the level of funding of these expert facilities are presented. Selected state forensic medical bureaus have been ranked based on the level of their financial support.

[New data on morphogenesis of gunshot bone injuries].

Studies with the use of atomic-force and scanning electron microscopy yielded new data that extend our knowledge of the complicated process underlying bone tissue degeneration as a result of its interaction with a high-speed injurious projectile. These data open up good prospects for the study of gunshot wounds and provide novel opportunities for forensic medical examination and diagnostics including confirmation of gunshot origin of the injury, elucidation of the properties (in the first place, energetic characteristics) of the injurious projectile, and determination of the wound size.

[Organization of the expert work of specialists from Perm regional Forensic Medical Bureau after the fire in the "Khromaia loshad'" club].

The paper summarizes the positive experience with the organization and optimization of coordinated activities of different divisions of the Perm regional Forensic Medical Bureau during the fire in the Khromaya loshad' (Lame horse) club in December 2009. The work of the Bureau personnel exemplifies adequate actions of specialists in a mass casualty incident with practically simultaneous admission of a large number of corpses. Despite lack of time, the staff of the Bureau managed to opportunely and effectively accomplish large volume of forensic medical examination without recruitment of additional workforce and means from other regions of the country.

[Experience in organization of joint actions of expert divisions during the accident at P.S. Podporozniy Sayano-Shushenskaya hydroelectric power station].

The authors illustrate positive experience in organization and coordination of joint actions of expert divisions of different sectors during the accident at P.S. Podporozniy Sayano-Shushenskaya hydroelectric power station in August 2009. Special emphasis is laid on the participation of experts of quick-reaction teams formed by territorial forensic medical bureaus, mobile and supporting forces from the adjacent regions.

[On the problem of scientifically-based substantiation of algorithms for the assessment of reliability of medical documentation].

This article deals with the problems of pertaining to the study and evaluation of "wrong" medical documents. The authors emphasize the necessity of development of reliable methods for this purpose with special reference to the goals of forensic medicine.

[Potentials and prospects of forensic medical dermatoglyphics].

An overview of dermatoglyphic studies for the purpose of forensic medical expert examination is presented with special reference to their main aspects, such as topics and objects of the surveys, their scope and methods, relationships with other disciplines.

[Estimation of health damage caused by burns].

In the article were considered peculiarities of the estimation of damage weight to the health in conditions of ambustion affects. Also in the article was shown the actuality and practicability of elaboration of qualifying features of ambustion affects for purposes of medicolegal investigation.

[Characteristic of fatal thrombotic complications based on the materials from the Thanatology Department of Forensic Medicine Bureau of the Rostov region, for 2004-2007].

The authors report statistical data on the spectrum and frequency of fatal thrombotic complications based on the analysis of materials available from the regional bureau of forensic medical examination collected in the period from 2004 to 2007. All lethal cases are categorized in terms of the patients' age, gender, time and clinical characteristics of the injury, time of surgical intervention. Results of the analysis indicate the necessity of examination of fatal cases of thrombotic complications following a standardized protocol.

[Assessment of the influence of the car driver's posture on the mechanism of injuries].

The objective of the present study was to experimentally simulate inertial displacement of body parts of a car driver in case of emergency break application. It was shown that the displacement patterns were significantly different in the drivers of "sedan", "jeep", and "minivan" car models. The different directions of centre of mass displacement account for the driver's contact with different structures of the passenger compartment. Hence, the different character of the resulting injuries.

[Organizational problems of disaster victim identification in mass casualties as exemplified by Tu 154-M and Airbus A310 passenger plane crashes].

Managerial experience is described that was gained during the large-scale work on victim identification following mass casualties in the Tu 154-M and Airbus A310 passenger plane crashes. The authors emphasize the necessity to set up a specialized agency of constant readiness meeting modern requirements for the implementation of a system of measures for personality identification. This agency must incorporate relevant departments of the Ministries of Health, Defense, and Emergency Situations as well as investigative authorities and other organizations.