Estimation of time since death after a post-mortem change in ambient temperature: Evaluation of a back-calculation approach.
Forensic Sci Int
; 319: 110656, 2021 Feb.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33373761
ABSTRACT
The temperature-based "Henssge method" is widely applied for death time estimation. For cases with a sudden post-mortem (pm) change in ambient temperature (e.g., by bringing the deceased into a cooling chamber), a mathematical approach has already been proposed [1] that enables estimation of the time of death by back-calculation of body temperature. This approach was evaluated under clinically controlled conditions. Twenty-five individuals who died in a neurosurgical intensive care unit were brought to cooling storage after approximately 3 h pm. Body temperature was repeatedly measured on the ward and in cooling storage over a period of 9 h pm. Back-calculation of body temperature was carried out on the basis of the proposed mathematical approach for cases with pm changes in ambient temperature; the results were compared to the known body temperatures. In many cases, the back-calculated and true body temperatures differed widely. Bodies regularly cooled down slower after being brought into cooling storage than the back-calculations indicated. The sudden change in ambient temperature could only be addressed roughly by the proposed method of back-calculation. In conclusion, the evaluated approach for addressing pm changes in ambient temperature should only be applied with great caution.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Cambios Post Mortem
/
Manejo de Especímenes
/
Frío
/
Modelos Biológicos
Tipo de estudio:
Prognostic_studies
Límite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Forensic Sci Int
Año:
2021
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Alemania