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Biomedical subjects

D T Reay

Publications and source records attributed to D T Reay.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Teenage suicide in King County, Washington. II. Comparison with adult suicides.

The 25 teenage suicides that occurred in King County, Washington, during 1983 and 1984 were compared with the 158 adult suicides that occurred during 1984. The comparison included the following features: sex, race, declaration of intent, motive, method, isolation, alcohol or drug intoxication at the time of death, prior suicide threats and attempts, counseling history and diagnosis, and family history of suicide. For the teens, we also queried school or employment status, anxiety-producing experiences, symptoms of depression, marital history of the parents, and number and order of siblings.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Identification of serial homicide victims in the "Green River Murder" investigation.

The Green River Murder Investigation in King County, Washington, is currently the longest and most active serial murder investigation in U.S. history. To date, little information has been reported on methods used in identification of serial murder victims. In this paper, various methods used in victim identification are reviewed and difficulties encountered during the course of the investigation are described. The experience of the authors is presented in order to acquaint other agencies with problems of victim identification associated with these serial murder victims and to provide key methods that may be useful in other such investigations.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Protection or peril? An analysis of firearm-related deaths in the home.

To study the epidemiology of deaths involving firearms kept in the home, we reviewed all the gunshot deaths that occurred in King County, Washington (population 1,270,000), from 1978 through 1983. The medical examiner's case files were supplemented by police records or interviews with investigating officers or both, to obtain specific information about the circumstances, the scene of the incident, the type of firearm involved, and the relationship of the suspect to the victim. A total of 743 firearm-related deaths occurred during this six-year period, 398 of which (54 percent) occurred in the residence where the firearm was kept. Only 2 of these 398 deaths (0.5 percent) involved an intruder shot during attempted entry. Seven persons (1.8 percent) were killed in self-defense. For every case of self-protection homicide involving a firearm kept in the home, there were 1.3 accidental deaths, 4.6 criminal homicides, and 37 suicides involving firearms. Hand-guns were used in 70.5 percent of these deaths. The advisability of keeping firearms in the home for protection must be questioned.

Accidents, Home↗
PubMed1986

Nucleotide sequence identity of mitochondrial DNA from different human tissues.

Recombinant DNA techniques have been used to search for mitochondrial (mt) nucleotide (nt) sequence differences between human tissues within an individual. mtDNA isolated from brain, heart, liver, kidney, and skeletal muscle of two different individuals was cleaved with SacI and XbaI, and then cloned in bacteriophage M13. Partial nt sequence determination of 121 independently isolated recombinant M13 clones containing either the cytochrome oxidase subunit III gene or the D-loop region of human mtDNA revealed base substitution differences between individuals, and between each individual and the published human mtDNA sequence. A majority of these base substitutions were transitions. No systematic nt sequence differences were identified between tissues within an individual, however. These results suggest that mtDNA sequence alterations do not accompany organogenesis, and that somatic mutations do not accumulate in the mtDNA of different human tissues to a level of greater than one nt substitution per molecule.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1986

Hemolysis and hyperkalemia complicate malignant hyperpyrexia during anesthetic death.

A healthy, 15-year-old male received a thiopental, nitrous oxide, oxygen, enflurane anesthetic for appendectomy. Cardiac arrest, following succinylcholine administration, was associated with marked hyperkalemia (potassium levels 8.7 to 11.6 meq), hemolysis (hematocrit fall from 41.7 to 26.6%, plasma hemoglobin 27 mg/dL), and creatine phosphokinase (CPK) elevation (8900 units). Vigorous resuscitative therapy including dantrolene was unsuccessful. The diagnosis of malignant hyperthermia was made by the marked CPK elevation on blood samples drawn during resuscitation and analyzed by the Medical Examiner's Office.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Wah Mee massacre. The murder of 13 Chinese adults in a Seattle gambling club.

This report covers the murder of 13 Oriental adults in Seattle, Washington, on February 19, 1983. The victims were patrons of a local gambling club and were murdered systematically during a robbery. This report highlights the management of multiple homicide victims and illustrates interesting features which were developed during the investigation.

Female↗
PubMed1985

Correlation of circumstances with pathological findings in asphyxial deaths by hanging: a prospective study of 61 cases from Seattle, WA.

Correlation of the circumstances of death with the pathologic findings in this prospective study of deaths by hanging affords insight pertaining to certain of the pathophysiologic mechanisms involved in fatalities of this type. The presence of conjunctival and facial/periorbital petechial hemorrhages correlates with increasing levels of body support below the point of ligature suspension. Hyoid bone and/or thyroid cartilage fractures (found in 26% of cases) are most frequently identified in those persons found completely suspended and in victims in the older age ranges. No hyoid bone/thyroid cartilage fractures, internal soft tissue injury, or petechiae were present in 13 (21%) of the study cases.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

A procedure for the investigation of anesthetic/surgical deaths.

A procedure for the investigation of surgical/anesthetic deaths is presented which allows for clearly defined jurisdictional assessment and correlates the autopsy and toxicological findings with the pathophysiology of the anesthetic/surgical event. This procedure facilitates an accurate certification of the cause of death in patients who die during surgery and anesthesia.

Anesthesia, General↗
PubMed1984

Ethanol in sequestered hematomas: quantitative evaluation.

When death is delayed after injury, blood collected from sequestered hematomas (subdural, epidural, and intracerebral) may reflect the presence of ethanol in the circulating blood at the time of the injury. The authors have examined a series of cases in which such a situation occurred and in which a circulating blood ethanol level was determined shortly after the injury. In essentially all of the cases, the ethanol level in the hematoma was lower than that in the blood sample drawn shortly after the injury. In a group of cases where death occurred immediately, ethanol concentrations in sequestered sites approximated those in blood drawn from the aorta. Possible mechanisms for the decrease in the concentration of ethanol in the sequestered hematomas are discussed.

Cerebral Hemorrhage↗
PubMed1984

Postmortem methemoglobin concentrations and their significance.

Small concentrations of methemoglobin are present in the blood of normal individuals. Increased concentrations of methemoglobin can be formed by the action of certain chemicals or drugs, or in individuals with specific genetic defects. There is little information available concerning the validity of postmortem methemoglobin concentration as an indicator of antemortem methemoglobinemia. We measured blood concentrations of methemoglobin in 49 autopsy specimens. We conclude that postmortem methemoglobin concentrations are not valid indicators of antemortem methemoglobinemia.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Boot top fractures in pedestrians. A forensic masquerade.

Fractures of the legs are characteristic injuries in automobile-pedestrian collisions. Typically these occur at the level of the bumper; measurement of the height of these fractures may be used to reconstruct the events surrounding the collision. We report two cases in which the lower leg fractures did not correspond to the bumper, but rather to the top of the boots worn by the pedestrians. In both cases the decedents were wearing boots with lugged soles which provided fixation of the foot and support for the foot and ankle. The mechanism of these injuries is analogous to boot top fractures which occur in skiing accidents.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1983

Sexual abuse and death of an elderly lady by "fisting".

We describe the death of an elderly lady which resulted from the insertion of the hand and forearm into the rectum. The practice of "fisting" is a form of sexual activity confined primarily to the homosexual community. We report this death to alert forensic pathologists to this unusual practice, which can be fatal.

Aged↗
PubMed1981

Sites of suicidal gunshot wounds.

Two hundred twenty-six suicides by firearms were analyzed to determine the entrance wound site. Overall, the head was the most favored site, accounting for 75% of the wounds; specifically, the right temple accounted for 39% of the wounds. The data were further examined in terms of specific weapon types. In the case of handguns, the preference for the temple was even more prominent, with this site accounting for nearly two thirds of the wounds. With long guns the predominance of head wounds was less pronounced but still present. Correlations with sex and age showed no significant difference in choice of site but did show differences in selection of gunshot as the means of suicide. Correlations of site with handedness showed that most individuals held true to form but that a significant proportion (8%) inflicted their wounds on the other side. Finally, three cases of suicide by multiple gunshots are presented.

Adolescent↗