Indian Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology

Fingerprints are considered to be most reliable for the personal identification of individuals in criminal investigations, civil disputes and also for routine identification purposes. At different social statuses; there is a need of verification of personality. The most vital and conventional clue in any crime in most circumstances is the fingerprints. Molecular Fingerprints is the new technology in which fingerprint residues contain a large number of inorganic and organic substances in them. Though the inorganic components are present in every fingerprint residue, the presence of those elements/ mineral components may be present in abnormally higher levels indicating / prompting the subject’s specific association of them with these elements eitherduetotheiroccupation,consumptionandconstantexposureofsuchelements/minerals or due to the environment with the abundance of such elements in fingerprint residues. This paper reviews many literatures that used only morphometric analysis of the minutiae details or third level details which includes the pore dimensions of fingerprint for Personal Identification. As far as what we found in literature, the study is only limited to Morphometric Analysis. However,basedontheliteraturewereviewed,tofillinguptheexistingresearchgap,advanced instrumentation techniques were used for the analysis of the elemental composition of the human sweat collected from the fingerprint.

Keywords: Fingerprints; Dermatoglyphics; Molecular Fingerprints; Sweat, Ridge Dimensions; Pore Dimensions; EDXRF; ICP-MS, AFM.

Participation of health-care professionals in the advertising business has been subject to a raging debate since days beyond recall. It has gained more acceptance but was despised in the past. The Code of Ethics of many National Medical Councils around the world has maintained that for a medical professional to engage in commercial advertising of himself or some other product is unethical-owing to the influence and the cultural authority that a health-care professional holds. This paper reviews instances where medical professionals and bodies have been reported to have explicitly or tacitly lent their support to brand endorsements. Malpractices within the advertising industry in relation to medical fraternity-such as untrue/conjectural claims, distortion of words of a reliable medical body etcetera have also been discussed. Keywords: Advertising; claims; Distortion; Endorsements; ethics; zohnerism.

Health is not merely the absence of disease but a state of physical, mental and social wellbeing. It encompasses all facets of human right, including the right to health automatically. In theerstwhileJammuandKashmirstateandnowIndianUnionTerritory(UT)hasbeenunder conflict situation resulting in assaults on health by conventional and rubber bullets, tear gas shells and pellet firearms in crowd control and security. The security forces during the last three decades to quell the discontentment and uprising have used power to the detriment of the people's health and well being. The access to health care and delivery assumes importance in conflict and peace situations equally being inalienable human right to life and health. The paper takes a legal stance on security-driven health issues and diseases in the human rights perspective in Kashmir.

Keywords: Physical Health; Mental Health; Conflict Situations; Human Rights; Emergency Preparedness.

Myocardial infarction is the most common cause of sudden unexpected death.On autopsy the evidence of coronary artery narrowing and gross changes are important for the diagnosis. But gross changes took 24 to 48 hours to occur , So the histochemical staining on gross by TTC is more helpful, as it diagnose infarction within 6 hours of death , And also the area from which the section should be taken also can be decided. Key Words: Myocardial infarction; TTC stain; Gross Diagnosis.

Sirenomelia is a lethal form of caudal regression anomaly which shows fusion of the lower limbs with a spectrum of anomalies affecting musculoskeletal, genitourinary and gastrointestinal systems.It resembles a mermaid in Roman mythology, with upper body of a human and the lower half resembling the tail of a fish.We report a case of anomalous fetus diagnosed at 18 weeks of gestation born to a non-diabetic mother.External phenotype showed fused lower limbs, no discernible external genitalia, imperforate anus,hypodactyly, ectopic cystic dysplastic kidneys and Potter’s syndrome with single umbilical artery. Maternal diabetes has been associated with caudal regression syndrome and sirenomelia. Here we report a case of Sirenomelia with Potter’s syndrome and cystic renal dysplasia not associated with gestational diabetes mellitus. The presence of cystic renal dysplasia in our case would further endorse the mesodermal defect in caudal regression syndrome. The possible use of genetic analysis will help to analyse the underlying molecular mechanisms of caudal regression syndrome associated with cystic renal dysplasia. Keywords: Sirenomelia; Cystic Renal Dysplasia; Potter’ Syndrome; Hypodactyly.

Periampullary adenocarcinomas (PAC) are rare malignant tumors with worst survival rates due to destructive route of the disease. It comprises distal bile duct, pancreatic, ampullary and duodenal adenocarcinoma that originate within periampullary complex. The primary origin of PAC in this area is often difficult previous to the surgery into pancreaticobiliary (PB-PAC), intestinal (I-PAC) and mixed type (MT-PAC) as PB-PAC carries bad prognosis. Objective:The main aim was to study the histomorphological features and immunohistochemical (IHC) expression of Cytokeratin (CK) 7 and 20 in PAC and assess their expression with known histopathological prognostic parameters. Method: A total number of 31 resected pancreatoduodenectomy specimens were studied in the department of Pathology, in a tertiary care center, Karnataka, India for histomorphological features with CK7 and CK 20 expression. All the statistical methods were carried out through the SPSS for Windows (version 22.0). A p-value of ≤0.05 was taken to be statistically significant. Results: The cases were categorized into PB-PAC (CK7+), I-PAC (CK20+) and MT-PAC (CK7+ and CK20+) based on histomorphological and histomolecular typing. There was a positive association between histomorphology and histomolecular typing. The difference in the proportion of histomolecular profiling between the expressions was statistically significant with p-value of ≤0.001. Conclusions: The concordance in PB-PAC, I-PAC and MT-PAC by usual haematoxylin and eosin microscopy and later confirmed by the immunophenotyping advocates sub typing to be incorporated in the routine histopathology report. The importance of correctly categorizing of the PB-PAC, I-PAC and MT-PAC is mainly for the prognosis and difference in administering of the targeted chemotherapy regimens. Key Words: Adenocarcinoma, CK7, CK20, Pancreaticobiliary, Periampullary reg

Background: India launched the National Framework for Malaria Elimination to encourage surveillance and strategies towards ‘elimination’ rather than control by 2030. Considering the significant challenges on this path, regional variations in clinical and haematological manifestations are useful parameters to help shape national elimination strategies. Our study aims to compare the demographic, clinical and haematological parameters among severe malaria cases and highlight mixed malaria infection. Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out between January 2015 and May 2018. Diagnosis was done by peripheral smear microscopy, followed by immunochromatographicrapid test and finally quantitative buffy coat test. Patients were classified as severe and non-severe disease according to WHO major criteria. The relevant data of the study subjects was collected from inpatient case records and analysed. Results: A total of 403 inpatients with confirmed malaria were included in our study. Severe malaria was observed in 21.5% and these patients had a significantly longer stay in hospital of 6.08 ± 3.78 days. Infections caused by P. falciparum (48.6%) and P. vivax (46.9%) were almost equal in number. Acute respiratory distress syndrome was observed more in 21.4% (9/42) of P. vivax infections. Mixed malarial infections were observed in 4.5% (18/403) of total patients and 33% of mixed malarial cases presented with severe manifestations. Conclusions: Attributing severe malaria to P. falciparum or P. vivax alone can be misleading especially in regions with complicated epidemiology, like India. Identification of malarial coinfectionsinfection are difficult without molecular diagnostic tools. Incorrect diagnosis may directly affect appropriate antimalarial therapy selection. Highlights • Clinical and haematological manifestations have not been observed as a malaria burden metric in all regions. • Identification of malarial coinfectionsinfection are difficult without molecular diagnostic tools. • Appropriate laboratory diagnosis of mixed malarial infections aids in selecting antimalarial therapy. • Study of regional variations in malaria presentations can improve public health. Keywords: Malaria co-infection; Plasmodium; India; Endemic; Eradication.

Background: Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury (TSCI) is serious health problem among adults. It leads to significant morbidity, mortality, permanent disability and socio-economic effect. The present study was conducted in Narayana Medical College, Nellore State Andhra Pradesh. Aims and Objectives: To know the common age group that is mostly prone to TSCI, sex difference of TSCI,the area of distribution of TSCI cases, mode of injury, various management modalities like Surgical, ICU stay etc and their role in the prognosis of patients with TSCI,the site of injury commonly involved and GCS of patients admitted due to TSC.To know the mortality rate among TSCI patients. Type of study: This is a two years retrospective and oneyear prospective study. Place of study:Spinal cord injuries admitted in Narayana Medical College & Hospital – Nellore, during the years 1st October 2010 to 30th September 2013. Material and Methods: All patients admitted and managed for traumatic spinal cord injury were retrieved and data collected in a pre-designed proforma. Patient characteristics, details of etiology, mechanism of injury, level of injury, extent of neurological deficits, details of investigations, details of management and immediate outcome were recorded. Observations and Discussion: The maximum cases 40 were in the age group of 41-50(26.31%). The mean age is 38.45 + 14.56.SCI cases were more common among males 115(75.66%), than in females 37(24.34%) and also the most common age group was between 41- 50 years 33(21.71%) followed by 21-30 years 30(19.73%). Male to female ratio was 4.18: 1.It was observed that maximum cases were in rural area 132(86.80%), followed by urban area 20(13.20%). It was observed that most common cause was fall from height 93(61.20%), followed by road traffic accidents 52(34.20%). It was observed that most common site of injury was cervical 67(44.10%), followed by lumbar 54(35.50%), thoracic 29(19.10%), thoracolumbar 2(1.30%). Conclusion: Traumatic spinal cord injuries affect young population and can leave these persons with significant functional and physical morbidity. Male persons are more commonly injured than females. Key words: Spinal cord injury; Spinal injuries; Spinal trauma.

Background: In the Xhosa culture, suicide by hanging is viewed very negatively. However, recently hanging has been on the increase in the Transkei sub-region of South Africa. Poverty, unemployment, alcoholism and HIV may play a role in these deaths. Objective: To study 20 years’ (1996-2015) trend in suicide byhanging in the Transkei subregion of South Africa (1996-2015). Method: This is a retrospective descriptive study from the records of Mthatha Forensic Pathology Laboratory. Results: Over a period of 20 years (1996-2015), 24 693 medico-legal autopsies were performed in the Transkei sub-region of South Africa. Of these, 1 555 (6.3%) deaths were recorded as being the result of hanging. The average rate of hanging is 17.3 per 100 000of the population per year. The majority (88.5%) were males. The rate of hanging has increased from 8.3 per 100 000 in 1996 to 16.7 per 100 000 of the population in 2015. The male-to-female ratio is 1:7.7 (1376/179). The highest number of hangings, 484 (5.5/100 000),was recorded among males between 21 and 30 years, while among females of 11 to 20 years, 66 (0.75/100 00) such deaths occurred over a period of 20 years. Conclusion: The incidence of suicide by hanging has doubled in the Transkei sub-region of South Africa over a period of 20 years. It is more common among young adult males. This health crisis needs urgent attention. Keywords: Suicide; Hanging; Self-harm; Death.