Antemortem and postmortem wounds
| A | Everted margins | |
| B |
Blood clots in surrounding tissue |
|
| C |
Swollen edges |
|
| D |
Sharp edges |
A dead body was found to have wounds all over the body. Antemortem and postmortem wounds could be differentiated by all of the following findings, EXCEPT:
| A |
Everted margins |
|
| B |
Blood clots in surrounding tissue |
|
| C |
Swollen edges |
|
| D |
Sharp edges |
Difference between ante-mortem and post-mortem wounds:
|
Trait |
Ante-mortem wounds |
Post-mortem wounds |
|
Edges: |
Swollen, everted, retracted, and wound gapes |
Edges do not gap, but are closely approximated |
|
Haemorrhage: |
Abundant and usually arterial |
Slight or more and venous |
|
Spurting: |
Signs of spurting of arterial blood on the body, clothing or in its vicinity present |
No spurting of blood |
|
Extravasation: |
Staining of the edges of the wound and extravasation in neighbouring subcutaneous and interstitial tissues which cannot be removed by washing |
Edges and cellular tissues are not deeply stained. The stain can be removed by washing |
|
Coagulation: |
Firmly coagulated blood in wounds and tissues |
No clotting or soft clot |
|
Vital reaction: |
Present |
Absent |
|
Enzyme histochemistry: |
Increased enzyme activity |
Diminished or no enzyme activity |
Ref: The Essentials of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology by Narayan Reddy, 27th edition, Page 273.
| A |
Well defined margin |
|
| B |
Capillary rupture with extravasation blood and ligature mark |
|
| C |
Yellow colour |
|
| D |
Gaping |
B i.e. Capillary rupture with extra vasation blood & ligature mark
All are characteristics of Antemortem wound EXCEPT
| A |
Gaping of wound |
|
| B |
Infiltration of tissue and increased Serotonin |
|
| C |
Presence of vital reaction |
|
| D |
Chicken fat clot |
D i.e. Chicken fat clot
Postmortem wound best differs from the antemortem wound by :
| A |
Gaps on incising |
|
| B |
No clots |
|
| C |
Absence of erythema and cellular changes |
|
| D |
All |
C i.e. Absence of erythema & cellular change
Difference between antemortem wounds and postmortem wounds, in favour of AM wounds is/are:
| A |
Are larger |
|
| B |
Increased gaping of wounds |
|
| C |
Increased enzyme activity |
|
| D |
b and c |
B i.e. Increased gaping of wounds; C i.e. Increased enzyme activity
Soft friable clot of chicken fat (yellow) or current jelly (red) appearanceQ is found in postmortem wounds. And in antemortem wounds clot is firm, rubbery & variegated in appearance.
| A |
Everted margins |
|
| B |
Blood clots in surrounding tissue |
|
| C |
Swollen edges |
|
| D |
Sharp edges |
D i.e. Sharp edges
Antemortem wound shows gaping, everted and swollen edges with vital reactions of inflammation, infection & healingQ. It bleeds freely and shows extensive, deep and firmly adherent clotting (staining) of surrounding tissue which can’t be washed awayQ.
