The American journal of forensic medicine and pathology
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Am J Forensic Med Pathol · Sep 1993
Review Case ReportsFatal falls in childhood. How far must children fall to sustain fatal head injury? Report of cases and review of the literature.
The question of whether fatal head injuries may occur from short-distance falls is one that continues to cause controversy. The records of the Sacramento County Coroner's Office from 1983 to 1991 were reviewed for cases of fatal head injury in children aged < or = 5 years, where a history of a fall was initially given. During this 9-year period, three cases of witnessed falls from heights of > 10 ft (3 m) were found. ⋯ A thorough literature review on the subject identifies two major viewpoints. One is that short falls have a significant potential for fatality. The other, more widely espoused view is that short falls rarely, if ever, cause serious injury or death.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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Am J Forensic Med Pathol · Sep 1993
Case ReportsUnexpectedly homicide. Three intraoral gunshot wounds.
Determination of suicide as a manner of death can be a complex process. Whenever gunshot wounding is the cause of death, the anatomic clues useful for determining suicide versus homicide include wound location and range of fire. Contact intraoral gunshot wounds are much more frequently associated with suicide than with homicide. However, based on prosecuted cases, three of 66 consecutive cases of intraoral gunshot wounds were found to be homicides.