Path 404: Forensic Pathology And Toxicology

Front 1

The __________ is defined as any injury or disease producing physiological derangement in the body that results in the death of the individual.

Back 1

cause of death

Front 2

The _____________ is defined as the actual physiological derangement that is produced by the cause of death that results in death.

Back 2

mechanism of death

Front 3

Give examples of cause of death.

Back 3

gunshot to the head, drowning, drug overdose

Front 4

Give examples of mechanism of death

Back 4

hemorrhage, arrhythmia, asphyxia

Front 5

The _____________ is generally defined as the circumstances surrounding the death.

Back 5

manner of death

Front 6

Name the five manners of death.

Back 6

Suicide, Homicide, Accident, Undetermined, and Natural.

Front 7

True or false: homicide implies intent.

Back 7

false

Front 8

True or false: approximately half of forensic pathology cases are natural deaths that are sudden, unexpected, and often unwitnessed.

Back 8

true

Front 9

A gunshot wound in which the muzzle of the weapon was directly against the skin is called a ___________.

Back 9

contact gunshot wound

Front 10

A gun shot wound where gasses fired into the tissue resulting in radiating tears or splitting of tissues is a ___________.

Back 10

hard/firm contact gunshot wound

Front 11

Powder stippling is a characteristic of which type of gunshot wound.

Back 11

intermediate range

Front 12

A gunshot wound in which there are no features to indicate range of fire is called a _________.

Back 12

indeterminant range

Front 13

What specimens can be retained at autopsy for toxicological examination.

Back 13

Blood, urine, vitreous humor, liver tissue, bile or gastric contents.

Front 14

What are the three main classes of abused drugs resulting in deaths.

Back 14

Cocaine, opioids, and methamphetamines.

Front 15

Once ingested, cocaine is metabolized rapidly to _________.

Back 15

benzoylecogonine

Front 16

If there is co-ingestion of ethanol, parent cocaine may be metabolized to _________.

Back 16

cocaethylene

Front 17

True or false: cocaethylene is not toxic and simply excreted.

Back 17

false

Front 18

What is the mechanism of cocaine toxicity (generally).

Back 18

cardiac arrhythmia

Front 19

Since cocaine activates the sympathetic nervous system, it is known as a ___________ or ____________ agent.

Back 19

Sympathomimetic, adrenergic

Front 20

_________ are defined as actual alkaloid extracts of opium and include _________ and __________.

Back 20

Opiates, morphine, codeine

Front 21

An _________ is defined as any medication binding to opioid receptors.

Back 21

opioid

Front 22

True or false: opioids are members of the opiate family.

Back 22

false

Front 23

___________ opioids are produced within the body and include _________ and _______ whereas ________ opioids are either semisynthetic or fully synthetic.

Back 23

1) endogenous, 2) endorphins 3) enkephalins 4) exogenous

Front 24

Semi-synthetic opioids include ________, ________, and _________. Fully synthetic opioids include ________, __________, and ________.

Back 24

Semi: heroin, oxycodone, and hydrocodone
Fully: methadone, fentanyl, propoxyphene

Front 25

Saturation of opioid receptors in opioid toxicity results in relative _____________.

Back 25

respiratory depression

Front 26

A frothy fluid discharge commonly seen after opioid toxicity is called a ___________ and is a result of profound ________.

Back 26

foam cone, pulmonary edema

Front 27

True or false: developing tolerance is not possible when it comes to opioids.

Back 27

false

Front 28

What is the chemical name of heroin.

Back 28

diacetylmorphine

Front 29

Heroin is rapidly metabolized to ___________, which is further metabolized to _________.

Back 29

6-monoacetylmorphine(6-MAM), morphine

Front 30

True or false: If only morphine is found in the blood, recent heroin use can not be confirmed toxicologically.

Back 30

true

Front 31

What is the toxic chemical component of antifreeze.

Back 31

Ethylene glycol.

Front 32

Ethylene glycol is metabolized into toxic intermediates ________ and _________.

Back 32

oxylate, oxalic acid

Front 33

Oxylate crystals may be visualized in which organ.

Back 33

the kidneys

Front 34

True or false: When there is acute alcohol toxicity and the ethanol level itself is not toxic, there is often a contributing cause of death.

Back 34

true

Front 35

The earliest and reversible type of alcoholic liver damage is known as _________ or ___________.

Back 35

hepatic steatosis, fatty liver

Front 36

What is another name for the irreversible liver injury known as hepatic fibrosis.

Back 36

cirrhosis

Front 37

How long to ethanol levels in vitreous lag behind ethanol levels in the blood.

Back 37

about two hours

Front 38

True or false: If the vitreous ethanol level is lower than the blood ethanol level, the individual died in an elimination phase.

Back 38

false

Front 39

Carbon monoxide has at least ____x greater affinity in binding hemoglobin than does oxygen.

Back 39

200

Front 40

True or false: Carbon monoxide binds hemoglobin reversibly.

Back 40

false

Front 41

In examination of carbon monoxide saturation in post mortem blood, normal levels up to ___% can be seen. This amount can increase up to ____% in heavy smokers.

Back 41

5%, 15%

Front 42

The "3 C's" of cherry red lividity are what?

Back 42

1) carbon monoxide, 2) cyanide, 3) cold

Front 43

Measuring carbon monoxide levels in fire deaths can tell us what?

Back 43

Whether or not the person was alive during the fire.

Front 44

Cooling of the body postmortem is known as ________.

Back 44

algor mortis

Front 45

Stiffening of the muscles postmortem is know as _______.

Back 45

rigor mortis

Front 46

Pooling of blood postmortem is known as ________.

Back 46

livor mortis

Front 47

True or false: During rigor mortis, the muscles continue to stiffen and remain stiff.

Back 47

false

Front 48

Explain what happens in each 12 hour period when referring to the "Rule of 12's."

Back 48

0-12: rigor progressively strengthens
12-24: rigor remains fixed and firmly established
24-36: rigor progressively passes

Front 49

After 12-16 hours, livor mortis will become ________.

Back 49

fixed

Front 50

What two things can livor mortis tell a forensic pathologist?

Back 50

1) Which rigor stage (1st or 3rd) the individual is in
2) If the person has been moved after death

Front 51

True or false: Potassium levels in the vitreous rise linearly after death.

Back 51

true

Front 52

True or false: Like potassium, glucose levels also rise postmortem.

Back 52

false

Front 53

In a healthy person, glucose levels will be near _______ within several hours of death.

Back 53

zero

Front 54

Very high postmortem levels of glucose indicate the individual died of _______________. This is further supported by the finding of _________.

Back 54

diabetic ketoacidosis, acetone

Front 55

Early decompositional changes include _________, _________, and _________.

Back 55

1)slippage of skin, 2) marbling, and 3) gaseous bloating of a body

Front 56

A particular form of decomposition occurring in arid environments is termed _________.

Back 56

mummification