Detectability of microscopic findings of fracture healing in the early stages of the healing process at various postmortem intervals and evaluation of wound vitality

Abstract

In our study, it is aimed how long do the microscopic findings of fracture healing in postmortem interval can be detected and whether the detected findings can be used in differentiation of fractures occur in the period of antemortem or postmortem or not. In our study, microscopic findings of 10 study groups included manually fractured bone samples that were created in antemortem period in New Zealand White rabbit fibulas. The specimens, in a closed environment under constant temperature and humidity that exposed to 15-day process of putrefaction, microscopic signs of inflammation, fibrin, granulation tissue and periosteal new bone formation in fracture edges were evaluated. In the control group, none of the evaluated parameters were detected microscopically. In microscopic evaluation of the study groups; fibrin was detected in the all study groups including postmortem 360th hour samples. As a result in our study; in bone fractures, inflammation findings, fibrin, granulation tissue and the presence of periosteal new bone formation, have indicated even in cases where advanced processes of autolysis and putrefaction or soft tissue has disappeared, it revealed significant findings in terms of vitality by histopathological examination. [Med-Science 2019; 8(4.000): 807-13]

Keywords

• postmortem interval
• forensic pathology
• bone; fractures
• microscopy