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To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2008.10.011 Byline: A. Hollinger, A. Christe, M.J. Thali, B.P. Kneubuehl, L. Oesterhelweg, S. Ross, D. Spendlove, S.A. Bolliger Keywords: Virtopsy; Auditory ossicle luxation; Petrous bone fracture; Post-mortem imaging; MSCT Abstract: As the auditory ossicles are difficult to display without harming them in conventional autopsies, lesions of these minute bones and the ossicular chain are regularly missed. In this study, the method of choice in clinical medicine for the examination of such lesions, namely multislice computed tomography, was applied to 100 corpses. The hereby obtained results regarding ossicle luxation and petrous bone fracture indicated that the lesions were not dependant on the amount, but rather on the type of energy inflicted to the head. Author Affiliation: University of Bern, Centre for Forensic Imaging and Virtopsy, Institute of Forensic Medicine, IRM, Buehlstrasse 20, CH 3012 Bern, Switzerland Article History: Received 12 June 2007; Revised 9 October 2008; Accepted 15 October 2008

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2007.02.031 Byline: L. Oesterhelweg (a)(b), S. Krober (c), K. Rottmann (c), J. Willhoft (c), C. Braun (a), N. Thies (d), K. Puschel (a), J. Silkenath (c), A. Gehl (a) Keywords: Cadaver dogs; Search for cadavers; Early postmortem interval Abstract: Cadaver dogs are known as valuable forensic tools in crime scene investigations. Scientific research attempting to verify their value is largely lacking, specifically for scents associated with the early postmortem interval. The aim of our investigation was the comparative evaluation of the reliability, accuracy, and specificity of three cadaver dogs belonging to the Hamburg State Police in the detection of scents during the early postmortem interval. Author Affiliation: (a) Institute of Legal Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg, Germany (b) Center Forensic Imaging and Virtopsy at the University of Bern, Switzerland (c) State Police Academy (LPS 36), Department of the Interior, Hamburg, Germany (d) Police Faculty, Technical College for Public Administration, Hamburg, Germany Article History: Received 3 October 2006; Revised 24 January 2007; Accepted 28 February 2007

Burns in children are a topic of fundamental importance in the context of the differential diagnosis between accidental events and abuse. In this context, the present study arose from two cases of children with second-degree burns (in case 1 on the leg, in case 2 on the foot) caused by contact with the hot surfaces of a hair straightener, which were reported as accidental events but trough the complete medico-legal investigation later turned out to be abusive burns. With an experimental set on pig skin and by simulating the two anatomical districts (leg and foot), using the same type of hair straightener, injuries were caused by simulating different positions and possible variants of accidental and non-accidental occurrence. The morphology of the injuries confirmed the assessment of child abuse in both cases by "pressing" between the two hot plates of the hair straightener, with almost mirror-like injuries on the inner and outer sides of the skin. Cases of child abuse contact burns with hair straighteners have never been described in the forensic literature, but their widespread diffusion makes knowledge of the characteristics of possible injuries important., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Patients with high-consequence infectious diseases (HCID) are rare in Western Europe. However, high-level isolation units (HLIU) must always be prepared for patient admission. Case fatality rates of HCID can be reduced by providing optimal intensive care management. We here describe a single centre's preparation, its embedding in the national context and the challenges we faced during the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic., Methods: Ten team leaders organize monthly whole day trainings for a team of doctors and nurses from the HLIU focusing on intensive care medicine. Impact and relevance of training are assessed by a questionnaire and a perception survey, respectively. Furthermore, yearly exercises with several partner institutions are performed to cover different real-life scenarios. Exercises are evaluated by internal and external observers. Both training sessions and exercises are accompanied by intense feedback., Results: From May 2017 monthly training sessions were held with a two-month and a seven-month break due to the first and second wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, respectively. Agreement with the statements of the questionnaire was higher after training compared to before training indicating a positive effect of training sessions on competence. Participants rated joint trainings for nurses and doctors at regular intervals as important. Numerous issues with potential for improvement were identified during post processing of exercises. Action plans for their improvement were drafted and as of now mostly implemented. The network of the permanent working group of competence and treatment centres for HCID (Ständiger Arbeitskreis der Kompetenz- und Behandlungszentren für Krankheiten durch hochpathogene Erreger (STAKOB)) at the Robert Koch-Institute (RKI) was strengthened throughout the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic., Discussion: Adequate preparation for the admission of patients with HCID is challenging. We show that joint regular trainings of doctors and nurses are appreciated and that training sessions may improve perceived skills. We also show that real-life scenario exercises may reveal additional deficits, which cannot be easily disclosed in training sessions. Although the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic interfered with our activities the enhanced cooperation among German HLIU during the pandemic ensured constant readiness for the admission of HCID patients to our or to collaborating HLIU. This is a single centre's experience, which may not be generalized to other centres. However, we believe that our work may address aspects that should be considered when preparing a unit for the admission of patients with HCID. These may then be adapted to the local situations., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Object: The aim of our study was to demonstrate the image quality of the new device using human cadavers, extending the horizon of available imaging modalities in forensic medicine., Materials and Methods: Six human cadavers were examined, revealing C-arm data sets of the head, neck thorax, abdomen and pelvis. High-resolution mode was performed with 500 fluoroscopy shots during a 190 degrees orbital movement with a constant tube voltage of 100 kV and a current of 4.6 mA. Based on these data sets subsequent three-dimensional reconstructions were generated., Results: Reconstructed data sets revealed high-resolution images of all skeletal structures in a near-CT quality. The same image quality was available in all reconstruction planes. Artefacts caused by restorative dental materials are less accentuated in CBCT data sets. The system configuration was not powerful enough to generate sufficient images of intracranial structures., Conclusion: After the here-demonstrated encouraging preliminary results, the forensic indications that would be suitable for imaging with a 3D C-arm have to be defined. Promising seems the visualization local limited region of interest as the cervical spine or the facial skeleton.