Forensic Radiology

The popular television show, CSI: Crime Scene Investigations has been on the air for 12 years, and it has brought forth the behind-the-scenes actions of criminal investigations, even if its portrayals are not always scientifically accurate. This has caused an interest in the forensic sciences that has led most people to a skewed view of how a criminal investigation actually works. The reality of a criminal investigation is that it is generally more tedious and difficult than the theory of criminal investigation would have you believe. By examining the forensic and investigative procedures of the case of Pamela Foddrill, it is apparent that the theory of criminal investigation was not representative of the procedures concerning examination

Pediatric abusive head trauma, also known as shaken baby syndrome, is a devastating form of abuse. It occurs when a young child is violently shaken. The repeated shaking back and forth motion causes the child’s brain to bounce within the skull, resulting in bruising and swelling. This intentionally inflicted injury causes trauma to the head and neck region, including cranial, cerebral, and spinal injuries. It occurs in infants and small children because the muscles of the neck region aren’t strong enough to go against the shaking force that occurs. Some make a complete recovery; others are left with debilitating handicaps, and in some cases death occurs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2012), states that among all the forms

My first article is about forensic radiology and how it determines unexplained head injuries in child mummies. Janet Davey and Olaf H. Drummer explained that the identification of cause of death in ancient Egyptian child mummies have changed since advanced visual workstations have produced more detailed virtual data that allowed more accurate reporting on injuries and cause of death. They elaborated on the fact that virtual images from computerized tomography (CT) data have revolutionized the study of ancient mummified remains. It has also removed the need for destructive procedures linked to unwrapping of bodies and has been used in a number of forensic pathology institutions. Forensic radiology protocols were used in the study of two small child mummies from the human remains collection in a British museum. They have been mummified and wrapped two thousand years ago. They explained that the bodies presented unique problems in interpreting the radiological data due to external linen

In 1962, C. Henry Kempe published an article discussing symptoms of shaken baby syndrome it was more towards the symptoms from abuse and not from accidents. Some of the physical indicators he discussed were poor skin hygiene, malnutrition and fractures. Depending on the age of the child and if the abuse has been ongoing there could be older fractures. John Caffey, a pediatric radiologist, following up on Kempe’s work in 1972 and 1974, suggested that babies could be seriously injured without outward signs of trauma to the body. “He described a constellation of clinical findings that were used to coin the term ‘whiplash shaken baby syndrome.’ Caffey’s observations…noted common injuries including retinal hemorrhages, subdural and/or subarachnoid hemorrhages, and minimal or absent signs of external cranial trauma.” More recently, the syndrome has been described as abusive head trauma resulting from shaking the baby, with or without impact (Isser & Schwartz, 2006). Shaken baby syndrome is a serious brain injury to a child. When a child is shaken repeatedly it causes tears in the brain tissue, blood vessels, and nerves. The child’s brain collides against the skull and it can cause bleeding and swelling in the brain. Up to the age of five years old a child can be a victim of shaken baby syndrome. It is most common in children who are between three and eight months old but the highest rates are in infants who are between six to eight weeks

In this paper, I will discuss the background of forensic pathology, the pros and cons of forensic pathology, and the similar and different in a forensic pathologist and a coroner. There are various disciplines in Forensic Science that can help with a crime, and solving that crime. One of these various disciplines is Forensic Pathology which the study of disease, and its causes, moreover; it involves the discovering the cause of the death where a death is sudden or suspicion to law enforcement. While a Forensic Pathologist can be helpful to law enforcement, and helpful in assisting in crime investigation, there are cons to being forensic pathologist. Furthermore, forensic pathologist can be confused with coroner even though they do the same

Non-accidental trauma (NAT) is a leading cause of childhood traumatic injury and death in the United States. It is estimated that 1,400 children died from maltreatment in the United States in 2002, and abusive head trauma (AHT) accounted for 80% of these deaths (Paul & Adamo, 2014). AHT, also known as shaken baby syndrome or inflicted traumatic brain injury can be caused by direct blows to the head, dropping or throwing a child, or shaking a child. Though the incident may only last for a few seconds, the effects can last a lifetime. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States, abusive head trauma (AHT) is most common in children under age 5, with children under one year of age at most risk. Nearly all victims of AHT suffer serious, long term health consequences such as vision

Shaken baby syndrome (SBS) is the leading cause of death in abused children. More than 4 out of every 10 of these deaths are seen in children who did not reach their first birthday. Also commonly referred to as abusive head trauma, SBS is the consequence of an infant being violently shaken with resultant neurological damage. This damage causes a sequence of events in the brain, starting with hypoxia, which leads to cerebral edema and an increased intracranial pressure (ICP). The increase in ICP leads to ischemia and a decrease in the cerebral perfusion pressure, which has devastating consequences.

This truth forms an essential link between the enforcement of law and protection of the public in the administration of justice.” Forensic pathology is clearly a crucial role in the justice system. You have to be a little weird and crazy to have a passion for the kind of work that the coroners and M.E. go through on an everyday basis. They use past knowledge to make decisions on how death occurred and they come across many different postmortem changes in dead bodies. Every field is important in forensics, but pathology advocates for truth and justice to dead

The challenges and opportunities of using forensic science in television are not new to the development of visual media. In fact, the origin of modern crime fiction is closely connected to the expansion of forensic science. Forensic techniques started being developed in the nineteenth century including; fingerprints, mug shots, crime photography, lie detectors, forensic profiling, and forensic pathology (Kirby, 2012). Forensic science is the utilization of science in both criminal and civil

A forensic practitioner can never be biased in an investigation and to ensure ethical behavior some departments have implemented a code of ethics. Although there is a lot of room for error, no forensic investigator wants to live with the possibility that an innocent person is punished or a guilty person escaped prosecution. For all the negative cases on the news there will be a plethora of cases that did not have any problems. Any time a crime scene investigator enters a crime scene, there is a possibility of contamination. A forensic specialist must present an unbiased testimony that is a clear and accurate representation of a crime scene. The room for error in forensic science is rather spacious, however there inaccuracies in any field of science. These errors along with false portrayal of forensic science in the media and strenuous work hours make the job of a forensic scientist excruciatingly

Statistics show that over half of infant deaths related to child abuse is caused by abusive head trauma or shaken baby syndrome. The effects of shaking a baby are serious and may lead to the death of an infant, studies show that an estimated amount of children who suffer from this is about 1,000 - 3,000 infants and toddlers. Every day one in four victims of SBS die from this abuse and 80% of the survivors suffer from permanent damages. Shaken baby syndrome or SBS has been around for hundreds of years, it happens when someone shakes an infant out of anger or frustration, this normally happens when the infant won’t stop crying. Infants have small brains and very weak neck muscles so when you shake a baby, you are making the brain bounce back and forth, hitting the interior of the skull causing either bruising, bleeding, swelling or all of the above to the brain.

I enjoyed reading, and although reading in another language was difficult, it was the only way I knew how to learn. This love for reading has brought me to discover forensic pathology. Initially I heard about forensic pathology from Patricia Cornwell’s books at the age of thirteen. Although thirteen might seem like an early age to read crime novels, I was so intrigued in forensic pathology that I found it hard to set the books down. My interest in forensics quickly grew.

In the cases of inflicted brain trauma, abuse can sometimes be difficult to diagnose because the baby may not have any external marks, other than bruises on chest and extremities from where the infant was held (Lyden, 2011). Researchers say that retinal hemorrhages in infant’s eyes should be considered as signs of abuse until proven otherwise, although they acknowledge that retinal bleeding in infants can be caused by other conditions, those conditions can be ruled out through history, physical exam, and labs (Lyden, 2011).

The book gives a general overview of the field of forensic science. The sections of the book include “The Scene of the Crime; Working the Scene--The Evidence; Working the Scene of the Body Human;

The photographer that is present at the crime scene is responsible for making one picture worth a thousand words. Photography plays an integral role in the documentation of physical evidence found at crime and accident scenes as well as during forensic autopsies. Forensic Photographers are among the first crime scene technicians to arrive at crime and accident scenes. They walk through a scene to obtain an overview before they begin taking photographs. Forensic Photographers apply their technical skills and their knowledge of anatomy and forensic requirements to take photographs that convey the information that crime scene, criminal, medico legal, or forensic investigators need documented. These