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Fatal pediatric hyperthermia: A forensic review.
- Source :
-
Journal of Forensic Sciences . May2022, Vol. 67 Issue 3, p1092-1107. 16p. - Publication Year :
- 2022
-
Abstract
- This paper examines a pediatric hyperthermia homicide in which the decedent was placed into a room with only a diaper on and left unattended overnight. There were no furnishings in the room except for a 1500‐W space heater and a stroller. The following morning, emergency personnel were summoned to the residence. A caretaker said the decedent was playing normally 5 min before making the 911 call. The decedent's initial rectal temperature was 42.2°C. Law enforcement asked how long the child had to be exposed to a high temperature in order to induce fatal hyperthermia in an empty bedroom. The scene was reconstructed using the child's residence and the same heater. Environmental data were gathered over a 16‐h period. The thermal parameters of the room and environment were analyzed using a lumped‐element thermal model. These parameters were then fed into an adapted Gagge's two‐node model of human thermal regulation, which provided a time‐window of exposure necessary to elicit hyperthermia, which in this case, depending on certain variables, ranged from 45 min to 4 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *FEVER
*SPACE heaters
*HEAT stroke
*BASAL metabolism
*THERMOTHERAPY
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 00221198
- Volume :
- 67
- Issue :
- 3
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Journal of Forensic Sciences
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 156617094
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.14989