Classification of hard blunt objects Hoffmann E.R. (Hoffmann E.R.), 1879.

• 1) stupid;
• 2) blunt;
• 3) prints.

Classification of blunt solid objects (Bokarius N.S., 1930)

• 1) objects with wide planar surfaces in contact with the body only partially;
• 2) objects with a surface having linear contact (between converging faces);
• 3) objects with a small impact surface, which can be completely reflected in damage.

Classification of blunt solid objects (Slepyshkov I.V., 1936)

• 1) blunt;
• 2) flat;
• 3) cylindrical;
• 4) objects with an indefinite surface.

Classification of blunt solid objects (Popov N.V., 1938)

• I. Natural human weapons (fingers, fist, palm, etc.).
• II. Hand tools
  • 1) objects with a flat surface (with widespread, limited and mixed effects);
  • 2) objects with a rounded surface (cylindrical or spherical);
  • 3) objects with an angular edge, prismatic (dihedral), pyramidal (polyhedral) and conical angle;
  • 4) objects with an uneven surface.
• III. Larger items (car parts and animals).

Classification of blunt solid objects (Raisky M.I., 1958)

• 1) objects with a flat, more or less wide surface;
• 2) objects with a blunt surface and corners forming ribs;
• 4) cylindrical objects of small diameter.

Classification of solid blunt objects Mukhanova A.I., 1969.

• 1) objects with a flat predominant surface (slab, wide side of the board, etc.);
• 2) objects with a flat limited surface (hammer, ax butt, narrow side of a board, rail, etc.), including those with a rectangular surface, oblong, triangular, round, other flat and embossed limited surface;
• 3) objects with a spherical surface;
• 4) objects with a cylindrical surface;
• 5) objects with a trihedral angle;
• 6) objects with a rib or dihedral angle (rectilinear or arcuate rib and rib of another shape).

Classification of blunt solid objects (Charny V.I., 1976)

• 1) a large flat surface (board, stove);
• 2) a large spherical surface (weight, cobblestone);
• 3) cylindrical surface - objects with a large long and small diameter (stick, crowbar, round rod);
• 4) elongated faceted surface with a rib - objects with a large length and small diameter
• (rod, bar);
• 5) a small flat surface (face) with ribs (hammer, ax butt, rod end); 6) corner or protrusion of a faceted object (iron, brick, bar, etc.).

Classification of solid blunt objects (Popov V.L., 1980)

A. Limited traumatic surface of a blunt object

• 1) flat - triangular, square, rectangular, polygonal, oval, round, other flat shape;
• 2) angular - in the form of a dihedral angle (ribbed), in the form of a trihedral angle (vertex), other types of angles (vertices) of polyhedra;
• 3) curve - spherical, cylindrical, other types of curved surfaces;
• 4) combined - combinations: flat and curved, flat and angular, curved and angular.

B. Unlimited traumatic surface of a blunt object

The forensic doctrine of damage is a branch of forensic medicine that studies the patterns of occurrence, variability, research and forensic assessment of damage.

Damage- this is a violation of the structure and function of the body as a result of the action of an external damaging factor.

Damaging factor- this is an object (blunt and sharp objects, firearms, etc.) or a phenomenon (electricity, high and low temperatures, radiant energy, etc.) that has the ability to cause damage (traumatic property). Damaging factors: physical, chemical, biological. Physical are divided into: mechanical, thermal, electrical, barometric and radiation; biological are divided into: microbial and antigenic.

Mechanism of damage formation(mechanism of injury, mechanogenesis of injury) is a complex process of interaction between the damaging factor and the damaged part of the body (or the organism as a whole), occurring under the influence of the conditional external environment and the properties of the organism itself and leading to the occurrence of damage. Types: impact (fractions of seconds), compression (longer exposure to a blunt object at a right angle), sliding (when an object is acted under acute angle), stretching, mixed.

traumatism- this is a repetition of homogeneous injuries in people who are in similar working or living conditions. Types of trauma.

1. Transport injuries - combines injuries occurring in people working or using vehicles. There are: ground (wheeled, non-wheeled), underground, air (aviation), water. Wheeled: automobile, motorcycle, bicycle, rail (rail, tram). Non-wheeled: caterpillar, sledge, conveyor, lift.
2. Industrial injuries - a set of injuries that occur in people in the process of performing their professional duties. Allocate: industrial and agricultural injuries.
3. Street injuries - combines a group of injuries that occur in people on the street. Street traumatism combines mechanical damage associated with a fall from a standing position, falling of various objects from a height, conflict situations, etc.
4. Household injuries are injuries that are very diverse in origin and occur in domestic conditions. Damage arising from housework, apartment renovation, use of faulty household appliances, domestic conflicts and other situations.
5. Sports injuries - observed in people involved in sports during training or sports.
6. Military injuries - a set of injuries in persons in military service. There are: peacetime military injuries and wartime military injuries - damage during hostilities (gunshot, explosive, chemical, radiation, thermal, etc.).

blunt objects in the forensic understanding, such objects should be considered that have neither a sharp edge nor a sharp end.

Blunt objects according to the area of ​​the impact surface are divided into objects with a predominant (wide) and limited traumatic surface; flat or curvilinear (spherical, cylindrical, etc.); smooth or rough; when struck by faceted objects, damage can be caused by edges (flat surface), edges and corners.

According to the nature of the material, blunt objects are divided into hard, soft and crumbling.

From the impact of blunt objects, abrasions, bruises, wounds, dislocations of joints, bone fractures, ruptures and crushing of internal organs, crushing and separation of body parts are formed. The nature of these injuries can be used to judge the mechanism of injury. In some cases, abrasions, bruises and wounds quite clearly reflect the properties of the traumatic object.

Weapon- these are products specially designed for the purposes of attack and defense (a hunting rifle, a carbine, a saber, brass knuckles, a dagger, etc.).

gun- products that are used in everyday life or at work, have some special purpose, but can be used for attack or defense purposes (penknife, table knife, straight razor, ax, iron, screwdriver, hammer and similar household items ).

Item- these are any other objects that do not carry any special household or industrial purpose, but can be used for the purpose of attack or defense (stick, brick shard, stone, glass shard, and others).

It is obvious that the determination of the belonging of an object to a weapon or tool is not within the competence of a forensic medical expert, but is the prerogative of the judicial investigative authorities. In legal practice, there are cases when a tool (for example, a penknife, an awl) was recognized as a weapon, since carrying it was intended to attack.

Classification of damage by type:

A. Injuries associated with violation of the anatomical structure:

1. Abrasion
2. Bruise
3. Dislocation
4. fracture
5. Gap.
6. Stretch
7. Dismemberment.

B. Damage associated with impaired physiological function:

1. Brain concussion
2. Paresis
3. paralysis
4. acoustic trauma
5. Accelerotrauma
6. Reactive psychoses
7. Other functional disorders due to external factors.

ABRASION- violation of the integrity of the epidermis, not penetrating deeper than the papillary layer of the skin. Abrasions are formed when the object acts tangentially, that is, at an angle to the skin surface.

Mechanism of Education abrasion depends on the angle at which the object acted, if it acted at an acute angle, then friction damage occurs at the point of primary contact, and then, when the object penetrates into the tissue, pressure is added, in which case the trace of the beginning will be more superficial than the trace endings. When the object is actuated at an angle less than a right angle, pressure damage occurs at the point of contact of the object, and then friction damage. In this case, the start trace will be deeper than the end trace. In this case, the abrasion will usually be against the background of a bruise.

Classification of abrasions according to Solokhin-Bedrin:

• by depth: superficial and deep,
• in shape: rectilinear (scratches), wavy, spindle-shaped, striped, semi-lunar, oval, round, annular, rectangular, triangular, trapezoidal, rhomboid, indefinite shape.

Forensic medical significance of abrasions:

Abrasions are always formed directly at the site of the traumatic impact (they are an indicator of violence and indicate the place of application of force). The study of the edges of abrasions allows you to determine the direction of movement of the traumatic object. In the place where the object first comes into contact with the skin, the edge of the abrasion is even, gently sloping, sometimes wavy. The opposite edge is usually undermined, steep with preserved, raised, exfoliated epidermal scales.

Abrasions allow you to determine the prescription of the injury. In the process of regeneration of abrasions, it is customary to distinguish four periods (time intervals are approximate, since the regeneration of abrasions, as well as other injuries, is influenced by many external and internal factors - the size of the damage, localization, age, state of health, the presence of diseases, features of the metabolic system, medical assistance, possible re-traumatization in the conditions of domestic or industrial activities and other conditions.

up to 12 hours - the abrasion looks like a shiny pink moist surface (yellowish or brownish), slightly sinking compared to the surrounding intact skin,

12-24 hours - a crust of lymph forms on the surface of the abrasion, and if the surface areas of the papillary layer are damaged, it is mixed with blood.

1-4 days - the crust rises (epithelialization from the periphery to the center), but is not yet rejected.

4-12 days - the edges of the crust are undermined, then the crust exfoliates from the periphery to the center of the abrasion and completely disappears.

2-3 weeks (up to six months) - depigmentation of the skin, the surface at the site of the fallen off crust is pink at first, but during wearing this color disappears, the abrasion site ceases to differ from the surrounding skin.

According to the observations of V.I. Akopova / 1967 / a whitish trace at the site of a former abrasion can sometimes be detected after 30-35 days or more, and by stereomicroscopy up to several months.

Localization: abrasions on the head and neck pass into the last stage up to 12 days after the injury, 14-15 days are necessary for the epithelization of abrasions on the front surface of the body and up to 20 days on the back and back surface of the lower extremities.

Abrasions allow you to establish the material from which the traumatic object was made (on the surface of the abrasions and in the underlying layers of the skin, you can find microscopic particles of the damaging object - grains of sand, coal dust, pieces of wood, rust, etc., when conducting special studies (method of color prints) you can identify areas of metallization and determine the metal from which the traumatic object was made).

The shape and size of abrasions carry information about the shape and size of the object (specific abrasions - crescent shaped, are formed by squeezing with hands, when the free edges of the nails of the fingers act on the skin. According to the features of such abrasions (the direction of the convex part, the number of abrasions on the right and left surfaces of the neck), it is possible to determine the relative position of the attacker and the victim, the neck was squeezed with one or two hands), specific abrasions are formed from the action of the teeth and often in the features of abrasions, the individual features of the structure of the dental apparatus are reflected, which makes it possible to subsequently identify the subject who caused the injury, during rape and attempts to it, abrasions on the inner surfaces of the thighs are typical, abrasions in the form of parallel or intersecting stripes are characteristic of blows with rods or a whip, abrasions at the openings of the mouth and nose, they speak of strangulation or attempts to strangle it, abrasions on the fingers and hands often indicate a struggle and self-defense that preceded death.

parchment stains- these are post-mortem abrasions, they are dense dried areas of the skin of a yellow or yellow-brown color, if they are located outside the zone of cadaveric spots, they differ from lifetime abrasions primarily in the absence of crusts (no signs of healing), there are no hemorrhages under microscopy.

BRUISE- accumulation of blood in the subcutaneous tissue, in body cavities or between tissue layers, resulting from rupture of blood vessels and internal bleeding. Three groups of bruises are fundamentally distinguished: actual bruising in the subcutaneous fat, hematomas (accumulation of blood in body cavities or between tissue layers), petechiae (point intradermal or intraepithelial hemorrhages caused by ruptures of small vessels).

Actually bruises are formed when exposed to a blunt traumatic object normal (perpendicular or almost perpendicular) to the surface of the skin. Unlike abrasions, bruises carry a smaller amount of information useful for forensic purposes.

Solokhin-Bedrin classification:

• by origin: traumatic and pathological,
• at the place of formation: local and distant (glasses symptom),
• by time of occurrence: early, late, very late,
• by depth: superficial, deep, very deep (subperiosteal),
• by size: petechiae, ecchymosis, large, hematomas,
• in shape: round, oval, rectangular, linear, other.

Mechanism of Education: impact, compression, stretching of tissues with blunt objects. Under pressure, capillaries break, with stretching - larger vessels (bruises from cans, Minakov, Vishnevsky, Tardieu spots). As a rule, bruising does not form on the abdomen and buttocks.

Forensic significance:

Localization of the bruise does not always correspond to the place of traumatic impact. Due to the peculiarities of the structure of fatty tissue in some parts of the body, bruising is localized at a distance from the site of injury. So, when you hit the area of ​​the glabella or the back of the nose, blood flows into the fatty tissue of the eye sockets, simulating a symptom of glasses, characteristic of fractures of the base of the skull. Sometimes, when hitting the posterior surface of the upper third of the thigh, a bruise appears after 1-2 days in the popliteal fossa, due to the flow of blood through the interfascial spaces.

The shape and size of the bruise are determined by the amount of blood that has poured out and the peculiarities of the architectonics of fatty tissue at the site of exposure. As a rule, bruises are round or oval in shape. Only in rare cases does a bruise reflect the shape of the traumatic object. When struck by objects with an elongated, relatively narrow surface, bruises occur in the form of two parallel strips, between which there is intact uncolored skin. This phenomenon is due to the fact that a blow with an elongated narrow object (a stick, a belt, etc.) is accompanied by squeezing blood out of the vessels at the site of direct impact and ruptures of the vessels along the edges of the active object, where bruises form.

Bruising allows you to establish the prescription of origin. In the first hours after formation, the bruise has a purple-red color due to oxyhemoglobin. The oxyhemoglobin is then converted to reduced hemoglobin, the bruise becomes blue-violet with a purple tint. Within 5-6 days, the disintegration of blood cells and the subsequent transformation of hemoglobin into methemoglobin and verdochromogen, which is green. At this stage, the bruise takes on a greenish tint. Verdochromogen is then converted to biliverdinAndbilirubin having a yellow color. At the end of the first beginning of the second week after the injury, the bruise acquires a yellowish tint. Changes in hemoglobin occur unevenly due to the different thickness of the bruise, so the color change occurs from the periphery to the center. After about 7-9 days, the bruise becomes tricolor: in the central part - blue-violet, along the periphery - yellow with a brownish tint, and in the intermediate zone - with a pronounced greenish tint. The rate of color change of a bruise depends on its size, location, age, and many other reasons. Analyzing the prescription of the formation of a bruise by changing its color, it must be taken into account that in some parts of the body, bruises never bloom. Bruises on the whites of the eyes, after the formation of reduced hemoglobin and the acquisition of a blue-violet color, do not undergo further color changes, only gradually discolor, leaving behind patches of gray-yellow staining that can persist indefinitely. Also, bruises on the transitional border of the lips, on the front surface of the neck, and nail beds are not subject to flowering.

By hematomas, one can determine the prescription of their formation, as well as the concentration of ethyl alcohol in the blood at the time of the formation of these lesions.

Lifetime and postmortem bruising:

• post-mortem bruises (cadaveric spots) are found in all layers of the skin, in vivo only in the dermis and pancreas,
• posthumous do not bloom,
• postmortem do not have swelling and compaction of tissues,
• intravital bruising may fade with pressure, but does not disappear,
• with a cruciform dissection, there is no blood clot in the post-mortem bruise, and the blood itself is washed off with water completely, in lifetime ones it is not washed off and cannot be mechanically removed.
• microscopically post-mortem do not have a cellular reaction.

WOUND- this is a violation of the integrity of the skin, penetrating the entire thickness of the skin deeper than the papillary layer, often accompanied by damage to the underlying soft tissues, neurovascular bundles, bones of the skeleton and internal organs. The totality of damage to the skin and underlying tissues is defined by the concept wound.

Wounds from the action of blunt objects: bruised, crushed, patchy, scalped, lacerated, bite wounds (so-called bitten).

DISLOCATION- persistent displacement of the articular ends of the articulating bones beyond their physiological mobility (violation of congruence). Depending on the degree of displacement of the articular ends, there are complete and incomplete (subluxation) dislocations. With incomplete dislocation, contact is partially preserved, but in inappropriate places. By origin, it is customary to distinguish traumatic, habitual, congenital and pathological dislocations. Traumatic dislocation is formed with an indirect traumatic impact (an external force is applied to the peripheral part of the limb) and forced violent movement in the joint. Habitual dislocation is most often the result of improper treatment - traumatic reduction, imperfect or insufficient fixation after reduction. Congenital dislocation is observed in newborns and is associated with abnormal intrauterine development, the formation of defective articular ends. Pathological dislocation is the result of a disease process in the joint cavity or articular ends, for example, in osteoarticular tuberculosis, osteomyelitis and other diseases.

In forensic terms, dislocations are injuries that carry little useful information. We can determine the place of application of force (peripheral part of the limb), very tentatively judge the force of impact. It is known that in joints with a high degree of freedom of movement, a weakly expressed ligamentous apparatus and a small mass of the surrounding muscle tissue, dislocations are formed with relatively small impacts. The greatest force is required to form a dislocation of the hip joint. Quite easily, dislocations of the interphalangeal joints of the hand are formed.

FRACTURE- this is a violation of the integrity of bone or cartilage tissue, and is always accompanied by damage to surrounding tissues. According to the mechanism of formation, there are three groups of fractures: direct (local) fractures, that is, injuries that occur at the site of traumatic impact. Secondly, indirect (structural) fractures - are formed at a distance from the impact site and are caused by the deformation of one or another part of the skeleton as a single whole structure. Thirdly, locally structural fractures, that is, fractures that begin at the site of impact as direct or local, and then continue as structural (with skull fractures).

According to morphological features, fractures are divided into single and multiple, longitudinal and transverse, oblique and helical, hammered together and driven in, depressed, perforated and terrace-like, comminuted and multi-comminuted, complete and incomplete. Incomplete fractures are sometimes called cracks; they are a violation of the integrity of the bone, capturing only part of the thickness of a particular area (an isolated crack in the inner or outer bone plate of the bones of the cranial vault). A special type of fractures is observed in children when the process of ossification of the growth cartilage is not completed, such fractures are called epiphysiolysis (sliding of the epiphyses along the line of the growth cartilage). Fractures can be traumatic and pathological (they occur with very slight external influences or even spontaneously with various painful conditions: osteodystrophy, fibrous osteodysplasia, metastases, Paget's disease, osteomyelitis, tuberculosis, etc.).

Forensic significance- fractures persist even on a fully skeletonized corpse, and often during the examination of an exhumed corpse, it is fractures that make it possible to correctly determine the mechanism of damage, shape features and other group signs of a traumatic object, the severity of a bone callus during an X-ray examination or during an autopsy of a corpse carries information to a forensic medical expert about a possible the period after the fracture, the morphological features of the fracture itself (its shape, size, condition of the edges and other features) make it possible to establish the direction of the external force, the angle at which the force acted on the bone, the shape of the object and its dimensions, force and kinetic energy spent on the formation of the fracture.

Signs of bone compression:

The fracture line is double, rarely single; usually located obliquely, less often transversely; additional cracks extend from the main fracture line.

Fracture edges are uneven, jagged, zigzag, crumpled, with additional cracks; "visors" and exfoliation of scales of a compact substance are often formed; the edges of the fracture are compared very poorly with each other, due to the chipping of the bone substance (that is, the formation of the smallest bone fragments that are lost during the study).

The fracture planes are uneven, coarsely serrated, stepped; the edges of the fracture are usually beveled at an angle of 45 * to the surface of the bone, with the introduction into each other and the crushing of the bone substance.

Bone fragments often have a triangular profile, lie freely

Additional cracks extend from the edge of the main fracture line.

In cases of incomplete fractures, deformation of the compact plate in the form of a “roll-like swelling”; transverse cracks are noted at the tops of the rollers; often accompanied by detachment of the periosteum and hemorrhages into it.

Signs of stretching of the bone tissue:

The fracture line is single, usually located transversely, obliquely or spirally.

The fracture edges are more or less even; well matched, without traces of chipping; no additional cracks are noted.

The fracture planes are relatively even, finely serrated; located vertically in relation to the surface of the bone.

There are no bone fragments.

There are no additional cracks.

In cases of incomplete fractures, there are no lesions or there are isolated linear cracks.

breaks- these are closed mechanical injuries of soft tissues or internal organs with a violation of their anatomical integrity. There are ruptures of subcutaneous fatty tissue, fascia, muscles, tendons, blood vessels, nerves, hollow and parenchymal organs. Occur with a sufficiently large force of external influence as a result of impact or stretching.

Ruptures of the subcutaneous fat are characterized by the formation of extensive hematomas and detachment of the skin, with the formation of a cavity containing blood clots and crushed fatty tissue. Ruptures of the fascia in the victims are determined by the presence of a transverse or oblique fissure during palpation examination in a relaxed state, and when the muscle is tense, it bulges. Muscle ruptures in the area of ​​the muscle belly or at the site of attachment of the tendon occur with a sharp tension or when exposed to bones (fractures or dislocations). Muscle ruptures are accompanied by hematomas, sharp pain sensations, dysfunction. In a living person, muscle ruptures are diagnosed by the presence of a palpation-detectable defect, which increases with muscle contraction. At autopsy, the rupture area has uneven, blood-soaked edges, a hematoma is expressed, a bone fracture or dislocation is determined. Tendon ruptures often occur with overstretching of contracted muscles, less often with direct traumatic impact, and are localized at the sites of attachment to the bone or muscle. A specific sign of tendon rupture is deformation due to the action of the antagonist muscles. Ruptures of the neurovascular bundles as a result of overstretching or traumatic impact of bone fragments in fractures. Ruptures of hollow and parenchymal organs are always associated with the action of a significant external blunt force and are observed during traffic accidents, falling from a great height. At the same time, ruptures of internal organs can also be formed under local, but concentrated influences. A blow with a fist to the liver area can lead to its rupture. Hollow organs are more susceptible to damage in the presence of fluid in them, more often there is a rupture of an overflowing bladder or stomach, stretched by food masses.

Stretching arise under the action of a significant static load or a load close to static, that is, slowly changing in time. When mashed, the skin, due to its elasticity, has slightly pronounced visible damage, while the internal organs, bones of the skeleton, muscles, fatty tissue are destroyed. Often, kneading is accompanied by the movement of damaged organs or their fragments from one body cavity to another. Such injuries occur during transport accidents (moving the body by the wheels of heavy vehicles), industrial injuries (landslides in mines) and in some other cases.

Dismemberment body or detachment of individual parts can be observed with direct local impact of blunt and sharp objects (crossing the wheels of railway transport, the action of chopping or sawing objects), with fixation of the body (or limb) and sharp stretching (casuistic cases of traumatic amputation of a limb when falling from a height are described), as well as in case of explosive trauma and deliberate dismemberment of a corpse in order to destroy the traces of a crime. The area of ​​dissection has specific features that make it possible to determine the mechanism and instrument of injury. Thus, dismemberment when moving the wheels of a railway train is fundamentally different from the action of chopping objects, which in turn cannot be confused with the action of sawing or cutting objects. Sometimes the nature of the dismemberment allows the forensic expert to determine the professional affiliation of the person who performed the dismemberment.

7.1. General provisions

Blunt objects are very diverse in size, shape, nature of the material and are most widely used in everyday life and at work. Therefore, injuries with blunt objects are most often encountered in forensic practice. The main difference between blunt objects is that they do not have sharp edges or ends.

The mechanism of injury is usually twofold: either the damage is caused by a moving object to a person at rest or relatively little movement, or the moving body of a person hits a stationary object (for example, when falling).

The extent and features of damage by blunt objects depend on the mass and density of the damaging object, the speed of movement, the shape of the striking surface of the blunt object, the anatomical structure of the damaged area of ​​the body, etc. Large heavy moving objects (for example, a truck, an electric train, part of a building when it collapses) usually cause very extensive damage, up to crushing and dismemberment. Other less heavy and small items can be picked up in the hand that propels them, inflicting damage accordingly. The latter are often inflicted by an unarmed person (for example, punching, kicking, heading, pinching with fingers, biting with teeth, etc.).

Depending on the nature of blunt tools and methods of application, these damages can be divided into the following groups:

1. Damage caused by an unarmed person (fingers, fist, palm, leg, teeth, etc.).

2. Damage by objects that were in the hands of a person (hand-held blunt tools).

3. Damage caused in a work environment.

4. Damage by means of transport (road, rail, aviation, water transport injuries).

5. Fall damage.

6. Damage during sports.

7.2. Damage caused by an unarmed person

An unarmed person can inflict damage with fingers, palms, fists, feet, teeth, which will be of a different nature. So, when squeezing the fingers on the body, either bruises with a peculiar arrangement are usually formed (a single rounded bruise on one side of the shoulder and several similar ones on the opposite side), or abrasions, more often in the form of crescents (when the neck is squeezed).

Can be distinguished abrasions from attacks and abrasions in self-defense. The first are formed in a person when someone attacks him and seeks to inflict damage on him. Such abrasions are diagnosed in the circumference of the mouth and nose, on the lips and buccal mucosa when trying to strangle by closing the breathing holes; abrasions on the neck when trying to squeeze it with your hands, often combined with bruising; abrasions in the female genital area and on the mucous membrane of the vestibule of the vagina. Secondly, these are abrasions inflicted on the attacker by his victim in self-defense (protective), localized mainly on the face or hands of the attacker and may be important when examining persons suspected of an attack, or when examining a corpse to clarify the picture of the incident.

More extensive finger injuries rarely stated. They require the tension of the muscles of the whole hand, and the fingers, grabbing, not only compress, but also stretch the parts of the body. In this case, dislocations of small joints can occur, rarely fractures of small bones; in newborns, strong hand pressure can cause a skull fracture with crushing of the brain.

Pulling out the hair of the head or beard occurs quite often both during an attack during a fight and in self-defense. The hair, clamped in the hand of the slain, has a very great importance when investigating crimes. However, one should not think that a lot of hair can be torn out with one hand, as the victims often claim.

Nail damage quite typical. They look like abrasions of a semicircular or linear shape. Particles of torn epidermis can be found under the nails of the attacker.

With the naked hand, fist causing various damage. Usually they do not break the integrity of the skin, but wounds can also be caused. From punches, there are skin deposits, especially in places located on the bones, bone protrusions with a thin layer of subcutaneous fat of soft tissues: in the forehead, nose, cheekbones, chin, on the back of the hands, etc.

From a punch, the most common damage is bruising, subcutaneous hematomas of various sizes and shapes, limited and widespread. Especially easily at the same time there are hematomas of the eyelids. They are observed in the form of so-called points when hit in the region of the back of the nose, bridge of the nose. Upon admission of the victim to the hospital, such hematomas of the eyelids of both eyes make one suspect a fracture of the bones of the base of the skull. However, they are very often observed in outpatient forensic practice and without fractures of the bones of the base of the skull and damage to the bones of the nose. If a bone fracture is suspected, an x-ray should be taken.

When punched, another common location for bruising is the lips. At the same time, on the mucous membrane of both lips, its sedimentation, ruptures penetrating to different depths are observed. Damage to the inner surface of both lips simultaneously or separately is explained by their “kneading” on a “hard lining”, on the teeth or jaws. When the lips are damaged, the teeth are often damaged at the same time. The latter are either knocked out of the holes or broken in the area of ​​the necks. Sometimes, pieces of the tooth are also chipped off.

From a blow with a fist, fractures of the bones of the nose, lower jaw, upper jaw, and zygomatic processes are possible. With damage to the temporal region, fractures of the temporal bones occasionally occur with epidural and subdural hematomas and even brain injury. Observed from punches and direct fractures of the ribs at the site of impact, rarely fractures of the sternum.

From a punch, soft tissue wounds are possible in the form of limited ruptures with bruised, crushed edges in places of bone protrusions, along the supraorbital edge of the frontal bone, in the region of the zygomatic processes, and glabella. With fractures of the nasal bones, sometimes wounds are caused a second time, by bone fragments. The force of a punch depends on the size of the hand and the physical development of the attacker, and the nature of the damage depends on the place of application and the magnitude of the traumatic force. Significant damage occurs when hitting with a fist, in which an object is inserted for weighting - a “bookmark” (for example, a weight, a stone, a piece of metal, etc.).

As you can see, a variety of and sometimes serious injuries can be caused by a fist.

From blows with an open palm or flat on the auricle, there are ruptures of the eardrum.

hand grip, finger grip may leave bruising in the form of bands of a rounded shape, especially in individuals with increased vascular fragility. The form of bruising allows you to determine in such cases the mechanism of their occurrence.

Injuries caused by the foot are much less common than the fist. If the blows are applied with a foot shod in some kind of footwear, injuries remain on the body, sometimes allowing an answer to the question about the injuring object. The extent of injuries that occur when trampling a lying person is in some cases so great that one has to think about another type of injury. Blows with a shod leg can cause, in addition to abrasions and bruises, bone fractures and larger ones than from punches: the bones of the upper limb, foot, fibula, especially the condyles. At the same time, closed ruptures of internal organs are also quite frequent: the liver, spleen, stomach, and intestines.

Compression of the chest with the knee can cause fracture of the sternum, indirect and direct fractures of the ribs.

Damage left by teeth are a material reflection of dental status. These footprints can be used to identify the person who left them. Tooth marks are divided into bites, bites, bites and traces-imprints.

When bitten, these features in the sliding area are displayed in the form of abrasions, scratches, superficial wounds.

When biting, an incomplete separation of a part of the body by the teeth occurs at the edges of the bites and the adjacent skin, the same features of the dental status can be displayed; in addition, when biting, rather large irregularities of the outer and inner surfaces of the teeth are sometimes displayed, and volumetric traces from the parts of the crowns that have sunk into the body can even be detected.

When biting off, lacerations remain with elements of tissue rupture from stretching; the features of the teeth are revealed worse and with distortions, but the same signs can be displayed in the edges of the wound as in the bites; these wounds are often complicated by some kind of infection.

The trace-imprint is a superficial variant of the overbite, it displays signs of the width of the crowns, interdental spaces, curvature of the dentition, incorrect setting of individual teeth; as a rule, these signs are weakly expressed and require especially careful study and fixation. To conduct a full-fledged medical forensic identification examination, careful and detailed fixation of teeth marks on a corpse is necessary. Comparative material is experimental traces of teeth. They can be obtained directly from the suspect, or more conveniently and accurately, from high-quality models of his jaws. with giving the existing bite. These manipulations require the technical assistance of a dentist (naturally, with appropriate legal registration). Damage caused by teeth is produced both in attack and in defense. The first are located on the face, neck, shoulders, chest. Protective lesions most often occur on the fingers and other parts of the hand, on the forearms, but can also be on the face and neck.

Thus, the nature, extent, form and localization of injuries that occur when they are applied by an unarmed person are different and depend on the physical development of the attacker. Sometimes such injuries end with the death of the victim at the scene. In this regard, blows to the neck with the edge of the palm are very dangerous because of the possibility of shock or rupture of an aneurysm of the carotid arteries.

7.3. Injuries from blunt objects with a flat surface in the hands

human

Objects with a flat striking surface are: boards, bricks, hammers, etc. The effect of such objects can be widespread, limited and mixed; it depends both on the size of the striking surface and on the part of the body where the blow is applied.

With widespread action the striking surface (for example, boards) is larger than the body area being struck. In such cases, round or oval bruises with unsharply pronounced edges are formed, abrasions are observed when sliding, and fractures can occur if the object is heavy (in particular, fractures of the skull bones from compression). The widespread effect of a flat object is manifested on rounded parts of the body: on the head, in the area of ​​​​the shoulder joint, knee, etc.

With limited action the striking surface is less than the damaged surface of the body. When struck with such objects (for example, with a hammer), bruises are formed, often with precipitation along the edges. With a large impact force, bruised, lacerated and bruised-lacerated wounds of the skin, crushed muscles and even perforated fractures of the bones of the cranial vault are possible. The shape and size of these injuries sometimes correspond to the striking surface of the damaging object, which can be used to determine the type of weapon, and in some cases, its individual characteristics. Bruised wounds are characterized by uneven, raw, bruising edges and connective tissue bridges in depth.

With mixed action the object is in contact with the body, on the one hand, with its edge, and on the other hand, the striking surface of the object goes beyond the damaged surface. In such cases, according to the edge of the striking object, damages are formed similar to the latter, as with a limited action, but with an incomplete imprint of the object. On the bones of the cranial vault, with a similar action of injuring objects, terrace-like fractures often occur.

Under the action of large objects with a flat surface (thick boards, etc.), when they are in the hands of a physically strong person, significant damage can occur up to multi-comminuted fractures of the bones of the cranial vault. Such injuries are often similar to other types of traumatism, and in some cases the issue of a wounding object can only be resolved by the method of exclusion. One of the differential signs in this case is the absence of data indicating a general concussion of the body.

7.4. Injuries by blunt objects with a rounded surface, held in the hands of a person

Items with a rounded surface are round sticks (metal, wood, plastic, etc.), crowbars, weights, bottles, etc. The strongest effect of such objects is manifested on the protruding surface of the body, in the head, shoulder joints, lateral surfaces of the chest, etc. The type of damage that occurs in this case depends on the shape of the rounded object (cylindrical or spherical), its dimensions and the force of impact.

Objects with a rounded surface(especially cylindrical) during their action cause maximum compression of the tissues at the point of contact. As a result of this, blood is squeezed out, respectively, to the convex parts of the injuring object. Therefore, when hit with sticks, a dense rope, etc. often there are bruises of a linear form in the form of two bands with a break in the middle.

Cylindrical surface of objects(stick, crowbar, bottle, etc.) can give long, sometimes linear wounds with bruising and raw edges when struck. Wounds of this kind are often combined with fractures of the underlying bones (skull, ribs, sternum), which are also observed while maintaining the integrity of the skin. These closed or open fractures of the underlying bones may sometimes correspond in shape and size to the shape and size of the striking surface of the tool.

When hit by cylindrical objects with considerable force in places where the bones are closely located (for example, on the head), bruised wounds are often formed that have uneven, raw, bruising edges. The main feature of such wounds is the presence of connective tissue bridges at their ends. The shape of bruised wounds largely depends on the features of the rounded surface of the injuring object.

Objects with a spherical striking surface: balls, weights, spoons, etc., when applied with little force, lead to the formation of bruises, often rounded. If the blow is applied with great force, star-shaped or irregularly shaped wounds appear on the skin with a rounded or oval zone of sedimentation. The edges of such wounds are hemorrhagic. On the bones of the cranial vault in such cases, depressed fractures are formed.

7.5. Damage to "hand" objects with an angular edge

Depending on the number of planes that form an angular edge, objects are distinguished with a dihedral (for example, the edges of boards, bricks, etc.), with a trihedral, tetrahedral and polyhedral angle (the corner of a brick, an ax butt, a hammer, etc.). The angular edges of objects represent a transition from a typically blunt (flat or rounded) surface to sharp edges and ends that characterize sharp tools, and the sharper the angle, the easier the wound is formed and the more this action approaches a chopping one.

The shape and size of the damage depend on the features of the angular edge. When struck by objects with a two-sided straight edge(board, etc.) longitudinal bruises or wounds are formed. Objects with a dihedral, arcuate edge like the bottom of a bottle will give bruises or wounds in an arcuate shape.

The degree of severity of bruising in the circumference of the wound depends on the angle between the planes of the object, and the smaller the angle, the weaker the hemorrhage along the edges of the wound. As the angle of the damaging object sharpens, the edges of the wound become more even.

When hit by objects with polyhedral (pyramidal) angles characteristic star-shaped wounds are formed, and the number of rays of the wound often corresponds to the number of edges (ribs) converging at an angle. So, an object with a trihedral angle (for example, the corner of a brick, board) gives a three-beam abrasion or wound, each ray of which is formed by the edge of the corner of the object. These rays, abrasions or wounds can be of various lengths depending on the direction of impact.

Trihedral, polyhedral and conical angles of blunt objects according to the mechanism of action, they are transitional to piercing tools. At the same time, the sharper the angle, the weaker the bruising and sedimentation along the edges of the formed wound. With a significant impact force and sufficient gravity, a tool with a polyhedral angle produces characteristic depressed or perforated fractures of flat bones.

7.6. Combined blunt injuriesobjects in human hands

When exposed to objects with an uneven impact surface very diverse injuries occur, depending on which part of the object was in contact with the body. In such cases, a detailed study can find individual elements of damage characteristic of flat, rounded and angular objects, since individual parts of uneven objects can have a flat, rounded and angular surface.

It should be borne in mind that the same object can cause a variety of injuries, since the blows are applied on a different surface of the object and at different angles with respect to the surface of the body. For example, a piece of brick may act as a flat, angular, or uneven surface, depending on which part of it caused the damage. This circumstance must be taken into account when examining multiple injuries.

Damage caused by blunt objects made of glass(for example, a bottle), damage of a different nature may occur. If the object is not destroyed, then the damage will be similar to that received from the impact of a blunt object with a rounded surface. If an object breaks upon impact, then its parts having sharp ends and edges cause damage, as from sharp objects.

If during the forensic medical examination of a corpse the question arises about the possibility of damage by a glass object, it is necessary to subject the wound channel to additional examination. To do this, the soft tissues of the wound channel are placed in a vessel and destroyed with a mixture of concentrated sulfuric and nitric acids. Glass fragments are preserved and can be detected by microscopic examination of the residue.

Proceeding from the described features of damage by hand-held blunt tools (flat, rounded, angular and with an uneven surface), it follows that it is extremely difficult to establish the type and, moreover, a specific specimen of the tool by the properties of the damage. Identification can contribute to the detection in the wound of a fragment of the tool or object with which the wound was inflicted.

7.7. The main issues to be resolved by forensic medical examination in case of damage from the impact of blunt instruments (objects)

If damage is suspected from the impact of blunt instruments (objects), the following questions can be asked to the forensic expert:

1. What injuries were found on the victim (living person, corpse) and how could they be caused?

2. What is the amount of damage? What is the mechanism of formation of these lesions?

3. Do the detected damage have signs that allow you to establish the size, shape, structure and other features of the damaging object, as well as identify it?

4. Are the injuries caused by parts of the human body (head, legs, fists, teeth)?

5. If several injuries are found on the victim, what is the sequence of their infliction? Are they applied by one or different objects?

6. How old is each injury?

7. What is the sequence of causing damage?

8. Could the damage have been caused by the objects presented to the expert?

9. Which of the items submitted for examination could have been damaged?

10. In what position was the victim at the time of injury?

11. What was the mutual position of the victim and the attacker at the time of the injury?

12. Are there injuries on the victim's body that are characteristic of wrestling and self-defense?

13. Has the injury been caused by your own or someone else's hand?

14. Was alcohol (drugs) taken shortly before death?

15. Are there traces of blood, hair, overlays of cells of organs and tissues, as well as clothing fibers on the object?

16. If there is blood on the object, then what is its species, group and gender?

17. If there are overlays of cells on the object, then what is their organ, tissue, group and gender affiliation?

18. In cases of examination of corpses, is this injury the cause of death?

20. Were the injuries caused during life or post-mortem?

Blunt objects, tools, weapons can cause a variety of injuries - from superficial to deep and extensive. Their nature depends on the object and the force with which it acts on the tissue. Therefore, when examining the victims, the most detailed study of damage is required with a simple eye, under a microscope, with ultraviolet rays. The latter allows sometimes to reveal imperceptible changes, subcutaneous hemorrhages, characteristic pollution and other features. Comparison of a suspected or known tool with damage allows you to confirm or exclude a certain item. Photographing the damage and comparing it with the weapon of attack can be of great help in this. Damage must be described and measured. Its special details are also measured and photographed. Such fixation of the damage and the circumstances of the incident with the obligatory successive photographing can sometimes help to establish the posture and relative position of the participants in the conflict.

7.8. Sports injuries

A sports injury is a consequence of non-compliance with safety precautions by athletes and insurance rules when performing complex exercises. The nature of the resulting damage depends on the sport. This circumstance requires the forensic expert to familiarize himself with the rules for conducting training or competitions and to participate in the inspection of the scene of the incident (especially the apparatus on which the victim performed).

Injuries that occur during sports activities usually become the subject of an investigation when they indicate any violations of the rules for organizing and conducting sports activities. As experience shows, certain injuries correspond to each sport. This should be taken into account during the examination and, if necessary, the required specialists (sports doctors, coaches, instructors, etc.) should be involved in it.

The most common form of injury during sports is dislocations, since athletes very often have to make sudden movements when any part of the body is fixed (for example, the foot when jumping, throwing a hammer, discus, etc.). When falling during classes on the crossbar, often there are fractures of the cervical or thoracic spine. When jumping into the water, not only fractures of the spine are possible, but also skull fractures.

With excessive overexertion during competitions or immoderate training requiring great physical exertion, death can occur from acute heart failure. In such cases, questions arise about whether the athlete could practice this sport, as well as about the correctness of medical control. In this case, it is important to identify any pathology of the internal organs.

In a forensic medical examination of sports injuries, it is important to carefully study the rules and features of a particular sport, find out what the real actions of the victim were at the time of the injury, whether he followed the sports rules, whether medical control was carried out over the health of the athlete during training and competitions.

During class special types sports (in aviation clubs, motorcycle clubs, etc.), injuries similar to the corresponding transport injuries occur. Therefore, an examination by an expert of vehicles with the participation of specialists in this sport is necessary here.

7.9. Workplace damage

This group of injuries, as a rule, differs from the previous ones in greater massiveness and severity, since acting force in such cases, it usually greatly exceeds the strength of a person. The nature of damage by parts of machines is very diverse, which depends on the design features of the machines and the mechanism of injury. Most often, there are blows by some parts of machines, flying parts, getting into rotating mechanisms, impact of internal vehicles, falling from a height and on a plane, etc. The damage observed in this case is in principle similar to the damage caused by blunt hand tools, but they are much more extensive and severe.

The main task of the forensic medical examination of industrial injuries is to establish the technical (material) cause of the injury based on the nature and characteristics of the injuries. Determining the cause of the injury, and especially the method of causing damage, in such cases often presents great difficulties for the expert due to the lack of reliable preliminary information and ignorance of the nature of the technological processes.

Significant difficulties in investigating accidents in some industries force the investigating authorities to raise a number of difficult questions for the examination to resolve regarding the mechanism of injury, the time of death, the tool that caused the injury, the posture in which the victim was at the time of injury, etc. Particularly more difficulties arise before the investigating authorities and the examination in cases of combined industrial injuries, when the question of mixed liability arises.

For the correct forensic medical diagnosis of cases of industrial injuries, it is of great importance to examine the scene of the incident with the participation of a forensic medical expert, which, unfortunately, is extremely rare in practice at present.

In agricultural production, damage caused by animals is sometimes observed. So, when hit by a horse's hooves, ruptures of internal organs, fractures of the ribs, fractures of the skull with damage to the substance of the brain occur. Blows with the horns of a bull or a cow are often accompanied by deep lacerations, sometimes penetrating into the cavity of the chest and abdomen. Damage from the teeth of large animals is usually extensive, depending on the structure of the jaws, the strength and sharpness of their teeth.

7.10. Injury resulting from a fall from a height

The nature and severity of fall injuries depend on many factors; and above all from the height of the fall, the characteristics of the soil and objects on which the fall occurred, and the posture of the victim. At the same time, the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe body that it hit at the time of the fall, the presence or absence of protruding objects that the victim’s body could hit during the fall and, of course, the state of health and individual characteristics of the victim, matter. The height of the fall varies widely: from the height of a person (falling onto a plane) to several tens or hundreds of meters (falling from a greater height).

At direct fall the main damage to the human body occurs from a single impact on the surface. At indirect fall the body encounters during its movement any protruding objects with a limited traumatic surface (balconies, cornices, satellite dishes, etc.).

During the collapse of any building structures, various objects fall along with the human body. (non-free fall), which can cause damage to it both during movement and after the body has fallen to the surface.

Of great importance is the nature of the surface on which the victim fell. The harder the place of "landing", the more extensive the damage. The latter led to death even in cases of falling on the stairs, on asphalt from the height of one's own height or from a height of up to one meter. Regardless of the conditions, falls from a height of more than 20-25 m almost always end in death, and a fall on the back can be accompanied by much less damage than when falling on the legs. This is due to the greatest resistance of the organism to the influence of transverse overloads.

During the investigation, it is of great importance to study the place from which the fall could have occurred, in particular, the possibility of an independent fall or jumping out of a window, from a roof, etc.

Example.

On January 17, 1998, an examination of the corpse of citizen M., aged 66, who died as a result of a fall from the 13th floor of a residential building along Ryazansky Prospekt, was carried out. Citizen M. during her lifetime after suffering two cerebral hemorrhages moved independently around the apartment, but with great difficulty. The lower edge of the window where the fall occurred was 1.2 m from the floor, the window sill was 57 cm wide. The deceased was short, obese, with severely limited mobility.

The state of health of the deceased during her lifetime, as well as her extremely poor relationship with her relatives, made it possible to suspect a situation in which she was thrown out of a window with the intent to kill. A thorough inspection of the scene and, in particular, the presence of an ottoman at the window, the discovery of a corpse directly against the wall of a 16-storey building, the posture of the corpse and other features gave reason to talk about the possibility of the victim falling on her own with the intent of suicide. This was confirmed by a suicide note found in the apartment some time later.

One of the common signs of a fall from a height is the predominance of internal injuries arising from the concussion of the body over the external ones, formed at the moment of impact on the surface. External injuries are in the nature of abrasions and bruises (bruised wounds are very rare). They often display the relief of the surface on which the fall occurred. During internal examination, as a rule, multiple fractures of the bones of the skeleton, as well as tears and ruptures of internal organs (roots of the lungs, large vessels at the base of the heart, ligaments and liver capsule, etc.) are noted.

By the nature and localization of skeletal fractures, in some cases it is possible to recreate the picture of the incident, including determining on which part of the body the fall occurred. So, when falling on the legs, impacted fractures of the bones of the lower leg and thighs, as well as circular fractures of the bones of the base of the skull, are possible. In cases of falling on the head, fractures of the skull bones and compression fractures of the vertebral bodies of the cervical spine are formed. Therefore, when examining such a corpse, it is necessary to open the spinal canal, the muscles of the back and limbs, including the feet (when falling on the legs, hemorrhages in the muscles of the soles of the feet will be detected).

When falling on a plane (from the height of one's own height), fractures of the skull bones in the occipital or temporal region often occur, accompanied by intracranial hemorrhages and compression of the brain. Signs of concussion of the body (tears of the roots of the lungs, ligaments of the liver, etc.) are usually absent.

Example.

Citizen A., aged 31, on January 19, 1998, while working, slipped and hit his head on a hard blunt object. 3 hours later, he felt dizzy and died 6 hours later.

Forensic medical diagnosis: massive subarachnoid hemorrhage. Small foci of hemorrhages in the right half of the substance of the brain with softening of the latter. Superficial abrasion of the skin in the right occipital-parietal region. Hemorrhages in the subcutaneous tissue under the abrasion.

As you know, special difficulties arise when it is necessary to establish whether the injuries were received from a blow with a blunt object or from a fall. If the damage does not have any features that characterize the object that caused the damage, then differential diagnosis is very difficult. In such cases, it is necessary to pay attention to the localization of damage, the possibility or impossibility of such localization, the occurrence of damage from a blow to a blunt object. When falling, damage typical of this mechanism can also occur. Most often, while walking, when a person slips, stumbles, he falls backward on his back and hits the back of his head. In this case, there are often cracks in the occipital bone and bruises of the brain. When falling on the buttocks, fractures of the coccyx occur. When falling sideways or forward, which is much less common, there may be bruises on the upper limbs, on the face. Falling forward and sideways often occurs on an outstretched arm, with fractures of the bones of the wrist, the lower epiphysis of the radius. There are also symmetrically located abrasions, bruises on the anterior surface of the knee joints, on the palms. The conclusion about the origin of damage when explaining their fall should be made on the basis of a comparison of objective data with the circumstances of the incident. If necessary, you should resort to a demonstration at the scene or an investigative experiment conducted by the investigator. Extensive injuries are observed in industrial trauma.

A fall from a height is usually the result of an accident. Less often it is used for suicide. In judicial and investigative practice, there are known cases of murders by dropping from a height of persons in a helpless state (in a state of alcoholic or drug intoxication).

7.11. The main issues to be resolved by forensic medical examination in cases of falls from a height

1. What injuries were found during the examination of the victim? What is the mechanism of their formation? Are they characteristic of falling from a height?

2. In what position was the body of the victim at the moment of impact on the surface? On what part of the body did the fall occur?

3. Is it possible to determine by the features of the injuries whether the victim tried to coordinate the process of falling?

4. Did all the damage come from a fall from a height? Does the victim have injuries of a different origin? If there are such damages, what object caused them?

5. Is the formation of all damages possible under the given conditions?

6. What is the type of fall (free, not free, direct, indirect)?

7. If the fall is indirect, is it possible for damage to occur on certain segments of the fall trajectory?

8. Intravital or post-mortem nature of the damage resulting from a fall from a height?

9. Did the victim drink alcohol (narcotic substances) shortly before the fall?

10. If there is blood on the plane of fall, then what is its species, group and gender?

11. If there are overlays of cells on the plane of incidence, then what are their organ, tissue, group and gender affiliation?

12. In cases of examination of corpses - which of the injuries is the cause of death?

Control questions

1. What damage is caused by an unarmed person?

2. What damage is caused by blunt objects?

3. What issues are resolved by forensic medical examination in case of injuries from the action of blunt instruments (objects)?

4. What injuries occur during sports and work environments?

5. What injury occurs when falling from a height?

6. What issues are resolved by a forensic medical examination in cases of falls from a height?

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Forensic medical characteristics and assessment of injuries with blunt solid objects: lecture // Selected lectures on forensic medicine (forensic traumatology) / Lev Moiseevich Bedrin. - Yaroslavl: Yaroslavl. state honey. Institute, 1989. - S.19-40.

Forensic medical characteristics and assessment of injuries with blunt solid objects: lecture / Bedrin L.M. — 1989.

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Most mechanical damage (up to approximately 80%) is caused by blunt objects, which are most common in everyday life and technology. The word "blunt" characterizes, first of all, the surface of the object, which at the time of the occurrence of damage is in contact with the body. Blunt objects can be hard, elastic and soft (pillow, rope, etc.). Mechanical damage is usually caused by blunt solid objects.

The blunt objects themselves are diverse in their mass, density, and features of the traumatic surface. The conditions under which these objects inflict damage are also different: kinetic energy at the moment of contact (impact) of a blunt object with the human body; place of contact (localization of damage); the angle through which a blunt solid object acts. The features of the damaged part of the body are also not the same. All this causes a wide variety of morphology and functional manifestations of injuries from blunt solid objects.

At the same time, all injuries from blunt solid objects have similar, typical group signs and features that make it possible to differentiate them from other mechanical injuries.

Important in the nature of damage from blunt solid objects are the features of their surface.

An idea of ​​the nature of the damaging surface of blunt solid objects is given by the classification developed by A.I. Mukhanov (Table 6).

Table 6

CLASSIFICATION OF DULL SOLID OBJECTS ACCORDING TO A.I. MUKHANOV (1969)

1. Dull hard objects with a flat predominant surface (board, stove, etc.).
2. Dull solid objects with a flat limited surface: rectangular, triangular, round (hammer, stone, etc.).
3. Dumb hard objects with a spherical surface (dumbbells, kettlebells, etc.).
4. Dull solid objects with a cylindrical surface (stick, pipe, etc.).
5. Dull solid objects with a surface ending in a trihedral angle.
6. Dull hard objects ending in a dihedral angle or rib.

The above classification does not take into account the relief of the damaging (trace-forming) surface of a blunt solid object. This is taken into account in the classification of A. A. Solokhin and A. I. Kuzmin, who propose to distinguish between smooth or embossed surfaces with different patterns.

Thus, the classifications provide for the characteristics of the DIMENSIONS of the traumatic surface, its SHAPE and RELIEF.

Mechanisms of injury from blunt solid objects

At the moment of contact of the traumatic surface of a blunt solid object, if it has sufficient mass and kinetic energy, with the human body, damage is formed. Several main mechanisms are involved in its formation: IMPACT, COMPRESSION, STRETCHING, FRICTION.

IMPACT is a sharp mechanical action when a blunt object moving at a certain speed comes into contact with one or another part of the body * or a human body moving at a certain speed comes into contact with the surface of a blunt solid object.

The moment of contact (contact) of a blunt solid object and a part of the body is currently called IMPACT.

As a result of a blow, injuries such as bruises, abrasions, bruises, bruised wounds, depressed fractures, concussion of the body or its parts occur.

It is necessary to dwell on concussion, which is a complex of functional and morphological changes that occur in tissues and organs with a sharp shaking of the body or part of it as a result of a strong blow. The degree of these changes can be different and depends on the strength of the impact and the area of ​​the body that has been shaken. With not very strong blows, predominantly functional disorders occur, for example, concussion of the brain; with stronger impacts, concussions occur, characterized by both functional and pronounced morphological manifestations (for example, ruptures or even separations of internal organs, hemorrhages in their parenchyma and ligamentous apparatus, etc., may occur). When a blow causes a concussion, they talk about concussion-concussion syndrome.

COMPRESSION - (compression) the action of two or more blunt objects with a significant mass, directed at the body or part of it in converging directions. In practice, it often happens that one of the squeezing objects is in motion, while the other is stationary. Squeezing is characterized by extensive damage to internal organs and bones with intact or minor damage to the soft integument of the body.

STRETCHING (stretching) - a process opposite to squeezing, occurs as a result of the impact on the body of two or more blunt solid objects in divergent directions. One of these objects is often motionless, it fixes the body or part of it. When stretched with great force, tears or even separation of parts of the body are possible.

FRICTION is the contact (sliding) of a part of a blunt solid object or its entire surface with one or another surface of the body along a tangent, and the object or body, and sometimes both, are in motion.

As a result of friction, skin deposits are formed, detachment from the underlying tissues, the so-called "sawing" of the protruding sections of the bones in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe joints.

These mechanisms of action of blunt solid objects rarely occur in isolation. As a rule, we observe a combination of two or more mechanisms acting simultaneously or in very rapid succession, which leads to a variety of emerging damage and their features.

Predominantly anatomical injuries from blunt hard objects

abrasions

After we have dealt with the main general issues of forensic traumatology, we can move on to a detailed study of injuries from blunt solid objects. First of all, we will be interested mainly in anatomical injuries, which are the most common object of forensic medical examination in case of mechanical injuries.

abrasions represent a violation of the integrity of the epidermis (mucosal epithelium) or the epidermis and papillary layer of the skin.

If only the epidermis is damaged, then bleeding does not occur. Such abrasions are sometimes called superficial. If the damage also captures the papillary layer of the skin, in which the vessels are already located, then bleeding occurs (such abrasions are called deep).

Abrasions are caused by the impact of blunt solid objects, and the more relief the surface of such an object is, the more easily, ceteris paribus, an abrasion occurs. In some cases, abrasions can be caused sharp objects, e.g. with a knife edge, with slight pressure and sliding By skin. Such abrasions have a linear shape and are called scratches.

The mechanism of formation of abrasions consists of impact, compression and friction.

The form of abrasions can be varied: it depends on the shape and size of the surface of the traumatic object, the angle at which it acted in relation to the skin. So, if a blow prevailed in the mechanism of abrasion formation, the friction was small, but. the angle at which the blunt solid "object acted was close to a straight one, then the shape of the abrasion can more or less fully mirror the shape, size, and sometimes the features of the relief of the instrument of injury ^ If the main mechanism for the formation of the abrasion was friction, and the advancement of the surface blunt solid object with its pressure on the surface of the skin was at an acute angle, then the abrasion takes the form of a strip.

Under the influence of healing, the abrasion undergoes significant changes; it goes through several phases or stages, which are presented in table 6.

Table 6

SCHEME OF HEALING OF ABRASIONS

The bottom of a fresh abrasion is located at or slightly below the intact skin, it is moist and shiny. Then, after the bleeding stops, the abrasion begins to dry out and a crust forms, under which epithelialization subsequently begins, from the periphery to the center. When the crust falls off, pinkish-bluish pigmentation of the skin can be seen at the site of the former abrasion. Pigmentation disappears after a few days and “then it is no longer possible to establish the place where the abrasion was located. The healing time for abrasions may vary depending on their location.

In terms of severity, abrasions are always light injuries that did not cause a short-term health disorder or a slight permanent disability.

Abrasions are of great forensic significance and make it possible to resolve issues important for the investigation and the court:

1. The abrasion objectively confirms the fact of the mechanical impact of a blunt solid object.
2. The location of the abrasion indicates the point of contact of a blunt hard object with the skin (impact site).
3. The number of abrasions located in different areas indicates the minimum number of impacts with blunt hard objects (the number of impacts may be greater than the number of abrasions, since some of the blows could not leave marks).
4. In some cases, the shape of abrasions may indicate the shape, size, and sometimes even the features of the relief of the traumatic object.
5. By changes in abrasions in the process of their healing, the question of the prescription of the injury is decided.
6. Sometimes the features and location of the abrasions may suggest the type of abuse (eg, crescentic abrasions on the neck may result from the action of the fingernails during an attempted strangulation).

Abrasions are often combined with other mechanical injuries - bruises, wounds, fractures, etc. In these cases, the assessment of damage in the complex allows you to solve important questions about the mechanism and conditions for the occurrence of injuries, the nature of the injury tool, the lifetime of injuries, etc.

Settling of the skin with blunt objects can also occur posthumously (for example, during inaccurate transportation of corpses). Such post-mortem skin deposits have long been called PARCHMENT SPOTS. After post-mortem sedimentation of the skin, the damaged areas dry up; become dense, have a yellowish, and then yellow-brown color. Unlike intravital abrasions, crusts do not form in the parchment stain area; on its section, either hemorrhage into the thickness of the skin is not detected at all, or it is slightly expressed. Histological examination of the skin with parchment stains does not reveal edema and infiltration, which are characteristic of intravital abrasions.

BRUISES

Bruises - hemorrhages in the skin and subcutaneous tissue and in deeper tissues from the impact of blunt solid objects. In some cases, bruising can be of non-traumatic origin - arising from diseases. These are the so-called pathological bruises.

The mechanisms of bruising are composed of IMPACT, COMPRESSION and STRETCH.

In size, bruises can be very small (petechiae), small and large, hematomas (accumulation of blood in limited cavities).

In depth, one can distinguish superficial bruises that capture the skin and subcutaneous tissue, and deep ones that also extend to muscles and other soft tissues. The size and depth of bruising is determined by the caliber and number of damaged vessels, the nature of the damaged tissues, the condition of the vessels, the age of the victim, the characteristics of the instrument of injury and the kinetic energy with which it acts.

The form of bruising depends on the shape, size and topography of the surface of the traumatic object. When struck with blunt, hard objects with a limited surface, bruising can mirror the shape and size of that object (for example, when struck with a belt buckle). When exposed to blunt solid objects with a predominant surface (board, etc.), bruises are more likely to have an oval or rounded shape, since the impact area approaches an oval or circle. When struck by objects with a cylindrical surface or close to them (for example, a stick), the bruises acquire a peculiar shape: two narrow linear hemorrhages, separated by an area of ​​unchanged skin. This is because the vessels are more resistant to compression than to stretching; in a narrow band of impact, the vessels are compressed, and along the periphery they are stretched and torn.

In the area of ​​bruises, after their occurrence and in the process of healing, complex biochemical processes occur, in particular, changes in blood hemoglobin, which externally does not manifest itself in a change in skin color in the area of ​​the bruise (usually they say that the bruise "blooms"). Flowing from damaged vessels, blood accumulates under the skin and, shining through it, gives the bruise a bluish color (hence the “bruise”). When the bleeding stops, the breakdown of red blood cells begins. Under the influence of enzymes, hemoglobin is restored, which gives the bruise a purple color.

Sometimes the process of converting hemoglobin ends here and the color of the bruise does not change until it is completely resorbed. This can be observed in areas where there is no subcutaneous fat, or where there is very little of it (the red border of the lips, the skin of the scalp). This circumstance must be taken into account in order not to fall into error when determining the prescription of the occurrence of bruising.

Subsequently, hemoglobin breaks down into the protein globin and the coloring matter - hematin (heme). Further, hemoglobin is converted into verdogemochromogen, which gives the bruise a greenish color, and then into biliverdin and bilirubin, which has a yellow color and, accordingly, stains the bruise. In bruises 5-7 days old, you can simultaneously see yellow, green and bluish-purple (in the center) colors. The bruise gradually turns pale, compared with the color of the surrounding skin. A change in the color of the bruise allows you to roughly judge its prescription, taking into account the size and depth of the bruise.

Sometimes a bruise is formed not on the surface of the tissues, but in their depth, so it does not become visible immediately, but “appears” after 2-3 days. This should be borne in mind when examining the victims, when they insist that they were beaten yesterday or today, and the expert does not establish traces of injuries. In such cases, the witness is advised to come again, in 2-3 days.

As a rule, a bruise forms at the site of impact. However, in some cases, bruising may occur far from the impact site. So, for example, with fractures of the base of the skull, bruises may appear in the thickness of the eyelids, the so-called "glasses".

Bruises are often combined with other mechanical damage (especially with such types of injuries as transport, falling from a height, etc.) - abrasions, wounds; fractures.

According to the severity of bruising, as a rule, injuries are light, which did not cause short-term health problems or minor permanent disability. However, in some cases, bruising, if there are many, and if they are large enough in size and depth, can lead to significant blood loss and shock. In these cases they pose a real danger to life and as such would qualify as grievous bodily injury.

M. I. Raysky cited cases of death from bruises observed by him before the revolution of 1917. It was about horse thieves caught by peasants at the scene of a crime and subjected to beatings during lynching. There were continuous bruises under the skin, death occurred in the first hours after injury from acute blood loss and shock.

The forensic medical significance of bruising is about the same as abrasions:

1. The location of the bruises indicates, as a rule, the place of impact of a blunt solid object;
2. Bruising, if non-pathological, is evidence of impact from a blunt, hard object.
3. The shape of the bruise sometimes gives an indication of the shape and size of the instrument of injury.
4. The color of the bruise allows you to roughly judge the prescription of its occurrence.
5. The location and shape of the bruises may conceivably suggest the nature of the incident. So, for example, small rounded bruises, sometimes in combination with linear abrasions on the neck, may indicate the possibility of neck compression with hands; multiple bruises on the inner thighs of a woman can occur when trying to rape, etc.

WOUNDS

Damage (separation of the skin), which captures at least the entire thickness of the skin, is called a wound. Distinguish between simple or superficial wounds, capturing only the skin, and complex or deep, affecting and deeper tissues. Wounds that communicate with body cavities or joints are called penetrating wounds.

Wounds can occur from the impact of blunt solid objects, sharp objects, from firearms.

The mechanism of wound formation from the impact of blunt solid objects consists of IMPACT, COMPRESSION, STRETCHING, FRICTION.

Depending on which of these effects prevails, the following types of wounds from blunt solid objects are distinguished:

• - HURT - from impact and squeezing;
• - TORN - from impact and stretching;
• - HURT-TORN - from impact, squeezing and stretching;
• - CRUSHED - from a very strong blow and squeezing;
• - SCALPED - (patchwork) - from an impact at an angle to the surface of the body, followed by stretching.

In addition, BITED brines are also distinguished from the action of human or animal teeth.

Despite the wide variety of shapes, sizes, and depths of wounds from the action of blunt solid objects, all of them have their own specific features that allow them to be differentiated from wounds caused by sharp objects or from wounds from firearms.

The constituent elements of the wound are: edges, ends, walls (planes), bottom.

Although wounds from the impact of blunt solid objects can occur on almost any part of the body, however, other things being equal, they are more easily formed where the bone is located close under the skin, primarily on the head. By the way, it is the head that most often becomes the object violent influences.

The shape and size of the wounds depend on the nature of the traumatic surface of a blunt solid object and on the angle of its impact with one or another part of the body.

So, under the action of blunt solid objects with a limited surface, the size of the wounds is less than or equal to the area of ​​contact of a blunt solid object with the body surface; if the surface of the object has ribs, then the wounds will be linear (with one rib); L-shaped or U-shaped. A triangular-shaped impact surface can cause an angular wound.

If a blunt solid object with a predominant surface acted, then bruised wounds arise, in the center of which one can distinguish an area with the greatest crushing of the tissue, and linear tissue ruptures can radially extend from the center of the wound. The action of such blunt objects (for example, boards) is characterized by severe hemorrhage and sedimentation of the skin along the edges of the wounds over a considerable extent.

The dependence of the shape and nature of wounds on the angle of impact of a blunt solid object with the body surface is shown in Table 7.

Table 7

DEPENDENCE OF THE FORM AND CHARACTER OF WOUNDS ON THE ANGLE OF IMPACT OF THE SURFACE OF A BLUNT SOLID OBJECT WITH A BODY

Wounds from the action of blunt solid objects have common features:

• - EDGES of wounds are uneven, raw, bruising, often exfoliated from the underlying tissues;
• - ENDS of wounds uneven, rounded, L-, P-, T-shaped;
• - TISSUE in the depths of the wounds are crushed, bruising, often there are jumpers between the edges, in the bottom of the wound;
• - BLEEDING from wounds is small;
• - HEALING - by secondary intention (if there was no surgical treatment of wounds).

Lacerated and scalped wounds have much in common with the described signs of bruised and torn-bruised wounds, but in some cases their edges are either without sedimentation at all, or sedimentation is observed in small areas.

If the wound is caused by a blunt solid object with one rib (especially on the scalp), it can, when viewed with the naked eye, very much resemble a cut wound: its edges are even, the ends are pointed. When examining with a magnifying glass in the walls of the wound, twisted hair follicles, small uneven edges, narrow strips of skin sedimentation along the edges of the wounds become noticeable.

When struck by objects with a cylindrical surface, predominantly slit-like or semilunar wounds occur, and their length corresponds to the length of the axis of the traumatic object. The edges of the wounds are uneven, they become thinner towards the center of the wound, which gives the wound the appearance of a gutter, the edges are bruised, aggravated, and the aggravation is wider, the larger the diameter of a cylindrical blunt solid object.

Great forensic significance of wounds from the action of blunt solid objects. The presence of a wound confirms the fact of the impact of a blunt solid object. The nature of the wound makes it possible to judge the mechanism of action of a blunt solid object and its features, the angle and direction of its action, and the force with which it acted. The number of wounds indicates the minimum number of impacts with a blunt hard object.

BONE FRACTURES

Of all the mechanical damage caused by blunt solid objects, fractures are of the greatest forensic significance. This is determined, firstly, by their high frequency of occurrence. Secondly, it is bone fractures that in many cases determine the severity of bodily injury, and, in combination with damage to the substance of the brain, internal organs, are the most common cause of death in mechanical injuries. And, finally, thirdly, bone fractures contain valuable information for solving important issues of interest to the investigation and the court (about the mechanism of occurrence, sequence, lifetime, the nature of the instrument of injury, etc.).

Most often, in about 70% of cases, fractures of the skull bones occur in forensic practice, followed by fractures of long tubular bones, ribs, pelvis, and spine.

V.N. Kryukov, who worked a lot and fruitfully in the field of forensic fractology, gives the following definition of the concept of "fracture": this is a violation of the integrity (separation) of the bone substance within the anatomical part of the bone with the formation of two surfaces that did not previously exist and allow them to be displaced relative to each other. friend in two or three degrees of freedom. These are the so-called "complete" fractures. In addition to them, there are also “incomplete” fractures or cracks, which are a violation of the integrity of the bone substance, which does not allow displacement of the disconnected parts of the bone relative to each other. An example of such fractures can be cracks in only one outer or inner plate of a flat bone. In addition, there are also “fractures” - incomplete fractures with divergent edges, i.e., allowing displacement of the disconnected parts of the bones relative to each other in one degree of freedom. Cracks form in flat bones, fractures - in tubular ones.

According to the place of education they distinguish straight(or local) fractures that form at the site of application of the traumatic force and indirect (or remote) fractures that occur away from the site of application of the force.

In the direction of the main lines of fractures, one can distinguish longitudinal, transverse, diagonal (oblique), spiral, ring-shaped fractures and their combinations.

According to the nature of bone damage, there are: linear, comminuted, perforated, depressed, terrace-like fractures. There may also be a combination of them.

According to communication with the external environment, fractures are divided into open and closed. Clinicians consider open all those fractures in which there is a violation of the integrity of the soft covers at the site of bone damage, regardless of whether there is a message from the fracture site to the external environment. In contrast, many forensic doctors consider open only those fractures that communicate with the external environment through soft tissue damage.

The nature, features, severity of fractures depend on many factors, the main of which are:

1. The force of the impact of the traumatic object.
2. The direction of impact, the place of application of force, the angle of interaction (impact) of a blunt solid object with the surface of the body.
3. Structural features (general and individual) of soft tissues and bones at the site of impact; availability of clothing and footwear.
4. Properties of a blunt solid object and its traumatic surface.
5. The type of deformity that caused the fracture.

Deformation is a change in shape under the influence of mechanical force. The deformation can be elastic, when, after the termination of the external influence, a part of the bone acquires its original shape and linear dimensions, and residual deformation, when the shape and linear dimensions are not restored after the termination of the force. Fractures of bones are characterized precisely by residual deformation, when the force of external influence exceeds the strength reserves of the bone and its destruction occurs.

There are five types of deformities that cause fractures, and from each of them, fractures acquire characteristic morphological features:

• 1) SHIFT;
• 2) BENDING;
• 3) COMPRESSION;
• 4) STRETCHING;
• 5) TWIST.

These types of deformation can be both isolated and observed in combination (for example, shear and bend, shear and compression, etc.).

SHIFT (cut) is a sharp short-term (within fractions of a second) impact of a blunt solid object with a limited surface at a right angle with significant force. So, for example, for a fracture of a long tubular bone from shear when hit by a part of a car, its speed should be about 60 km / h.

In case of a shear fracture, the processes of bone deformation, and then its destruction, are localized at the site of direct impact of the damaging object. Therefore, shear fractures are always straight (therefore, shear fractures do not occur at the base of the skull, since the base of the skull cannot be the point of application of force). Shear fractures are transverse or obliquely transverse in relation to the long axis of the bone. Shear fractures are especially common on long tubular bones, although fractures from other types of deformity are also formed on them.

In the second type of deformation - BENDING (sometimes called a fold), two forces act on the bone, directed towards each other at an angle. Moreover, if we are talking about a long tubular bone, then one or both ends of it can be fixed. The bone bends, its mechanical stresses change: on the convex surface there are areas of tension, and on the concave - compression. Since the bone is much less resistant to stretching, it is on the convex surface that a crack occurs, which then bifurcates towards the concave surface, forming a fragment. Flexural fractures can be either direct or indirect.

In compressive deformation, two forces act on the bone towards each other. In practice, it may be that one force acts on the bone, compressing it, while on the other hand the bone is fixed. Compression deformation for long tubular bones and the spine can be in both horizontal and vertical directions. When compressed in the vertical direction, impacted fractures are formed: on the outer surface of the bone along its entire circumference, areas of stress appear, the bone breaks in the transverse direction, and if the compression force continues to act, then longitudinal cracks extend from the line of this fracture, which are indirect fractures. An example is impacted fractures of the hips and spine when falling from a height onto straightened legs.

With horizontal compression, stretching areas appear on the lateral surfaces of the bone, the bone tube is deformed and local fractures are formed.

Compression deformation on the bones of the skull, pelvis, ribs occurs in the horizontal direction (and on the skull and in the lateral direction). Under the action of a significant force on the skull from front to back or in the lateral direction, when one of the surfaces of the skull is pressed against some blunt object, the skull is compressed, sharply flattened, and its circumference increases. In areas of greatest tension, located as if along the equator, multiple fractures occur. More about this will be discussed in the section on skull fractures.

In tensile deformation, two forces act on the tubular bone in divergent directions. Often, one end of the bone is fixed. The bone tube under the influence of stretching becomes thinner in the diaphysis, indirect fractures are formed. Such fractures can be observed, for example, in a railway injury that is not associated with a wheel rolling over a person’s body, when the lower limb is somehow fixed, and the upper part of the body is captured by a part of a moving train.

In torsion deformation, under the influence of two forces acting towards each other, when the bone rotates around its axis, with one end of the bone fixed, S-shaped, spiral indirect fractures are formed.

As already noted, in all five types of deformation, compression and tension are observed in different parts of the bone, which have their own morphological features. On the side of the bone that has undergone stretching, the fracture line is always single, finely serrated, straight, without chipping elements. Its direction is often transverse, less often - longitudinal, diagonal, spiral. From the ends of such a fracture, 2-3 additional lines of fractures begin, heading towards the compression zone on the opposite surface of the bone and forming an angle open in this direction.

On the side of compression of the bone, the fracture line can be single or double, it is uneven, zigzag, more often located obliquely or longitudinally, below or above whether: the fracture is on the side of extension, but never coincides with it. The edges of the fracture are large-toothed, uneven, split, gaping. On the side of compression, a free-lying bone fragment is formed. The edges of the fracture are crumbled, one of its edges is undermined, the other is bevelled. Often, additional fractures form on the side of compression, the lines of which depart in a perpendicular direction to the main fracture line.

FRACTURES OF THE SKULL BONES

Fractures of the skull bones are of the greatest forensic significance, so we will analyze them in more detail.

Fractures of the skull bones occur either from the impact of blunt solid objects, or from squeezing, or from a combination of both. Accordingly, skull fractures are formed from shear, flexure, or combinations of the two, sometimes accompanied by compression.

From deformation, shear a due to a strong impact of a blunt solid object with a limited surface at an angle close to a right one, only straight perforated fractures are formed on the bones of the cranial vault, to a certain extent reflecting the shape and size of the impacting surface of the trauma tool.

When the direction of impact is not strictly perpendicular, but at a sharper angle, fractures arise from shear and bending and have the character of depressed or terraced. Such fractures arise from the impact of blunt objects with a limited surface. In this case, the side of the fracture, where the shift took place, indicates the place of the primary impact.

Fractures from bending deformation a are formed from the impact of blunt solid objects with a rectangular relatively wide surface, spherical or rounded. If we consider such fractures from the side of the outer plate, then we can see concentric cracks that limit the areas of depression in the form of a circle or oval; radial cracks inside this section of the fracture, extending from the center (the place where the convex surface of the bone collides with the traumatic object) and not crossing concentric cracks, as well as meridional cracks extending away from the concentric and extending to the bones of the vault and base of the skull, if there was a strong impact a blunt solid object of a spherical shape (or close to it) with a large diameter.

From objects with a wide predominant surface with single blows to those sides of the skull that do not have a large curvature, multi-comminuted fractures occur.

The skull can be compressed both as a whole and in separate parts by blunt solid objects with a predominant surface in various directions: front to back (back to front), from the sides, from top to bottom (bottom to top).

In this case, bone fractures are formed from bending deformation in combination with stretching deformation and, less often, compression deformation.

When the head is compressed, direct bone fractures are formed in the places where forces are applied and indirect ones - at a distance from them (on the vault and on the base of the skull).

Fractures of the bones of the skull with compression in the lateral direction.

In these cases, the diameter of the skull between the poles is shortened, and lengthened along the equator. At the points of compression (application of forces), the bone plates bend inward, stretching areas appear on the inner plates, and compression areas appear on the outer ones. In the areas of greatest tension - along the equator, cracks appear that go along the meridional directions, and from them, due to the bending of the bones, perpendicular cracks extend in the equatorial direction, which as a result forms multi-comminuted fractures. The same mechanism of fracture formation occurs when the skull is compressed in the anterior-posterior direction.

When the skull is compressed from top to bottom, in addition to the fractures described, which are typical for skull compression in general, there are also ring-shaped fractures around the foramen magnum, and the shape of such a fracture is the closer to the circle, the more vertical was the position of the human head at the time of compression. When squeezed with a very significant force, cracks can depart from such an annular fracture, connecting with other fractures at the base of the skull.

Injuries to the bones of the skull are usually accompanied by damage to the membranes and substance of the brain, which are more pronounced, the more extensive the fractures and deformity of the skull, which is the cause of death in such cases.

We have outlined the typical features of the formation of skull fractures in general. It should be borne in mind that approximately the same impacts on the same anatomical regions of the skull in different people can cause the occurrence of fractures, different in severity and some morphological manifestations. It depends on many reasons: the strength characteristics of the various bones of the skull in general and in each person individually; the size and shape of the skull, in particular, on the ratio of the transverse-longitudinal diameter and the combination of height-latitudinal with height-longitudinal indicators; on the gender and age of the person, the degree of fusion of sutures, and others.

These characteristics and the features of skull fractures that depend on them were studied in detail by V.N. Kryukov (1986) and his students V.O. Plaksin, I.A. Gedygushev and others.

Fractures of the bones of the spine, ribs and pelvis are also of more important forensic medical significance, since they are often accompanied by injuries. spinal cord and internal organs, causing danger to life and in some cases ending in death.

FRACTURES OF THE SPINE

Fractures of the vertebrae (body, arches, transverse and spinous processes), as well as damage to the intervertebral discs and ligamentous apparatus, arise from impact, compression, a combination of both.

From a direct impact, direct fractures occur, from all other types of impact, fractures are indirect, they form far from the place of application of force.

When hitting the spine from behind, fractures occur more often in the thoracic and lumbar regions, less often in the cervical, since it is easily displaced, which reduces the force of impact. Fractures of the arches form, the vertebrae are displaced in the direction of impact. In these cases, shear deformation acts, sometimes a bend is attached to it. If there is a sharp shift of the vertebrae in relation to each other, then damage to the spinal cord may occur, leading either to an anatomical or physiological break.

With a sharp flexion and extension of the spine, indirect fractures from bending deformation may occur. More often they occur in the cervical region, less often in the thoracic region, and even more rarely in the lumbar region.

The mechanism of the occurrence of fractures during flexion of the spine is presented as follows: with a sharp movement of the spine forward, the posterior, then the interspinous ligaments and ligaments between the vertebral arches are pulled and torn in the transverse direction, then the dura mater is torn from the posterior surface and, if flexion and the resulting compression continue, then compression fractures of the vertebrae are formed. As if the "mirror" mechanism takes place with a sharp extension of the spine.

With sharp tilts of the head to the left or right, the mechanism for the occurrence of fractures is approximately the same, but fractures of the transverse processes join the existing fractures. To this it should be added that with sharp tilts of the head and neck to the left and right, along with sprain and rupture of the intervertebral ligaments, ruptures of the intervertebral arteries can also occur, and, as a result, the rapid development of basal "subarachnoid hemorrhages leading to death (V. L Popov, 1988).

With a sharp rotation of the spine, its cervical region is most often damaged. In this case, torsion and bending deformations act, unilateral ruptures of the ligaments are observed, and fractures rarely occur.

COMPRESSION of the spine can be observed in both horizontal and vertical directions. In the first case, as a result of deformations of compression and bending, to which torsion is sometimes attached, indirect fractures of all formations of the vertebrae are formed. With vertical compression, indirect compression fractures are formed.

In order to understand in detail the nature of vertebral fractures, and to resolve questions about the mechanism of their formation and the type of impact, it is necessary to remove the entire damaged section of the spine when examining a corpse, place it for 2-3 days in a formalin solution and then examine it using one of the methods, proposed by A.A. Solokhin, V.A. Sveshnikov and Yu.I. Sosedko.

RIB FRACTURES

Rib fractures occur from impact, compression, or a combination of both.

From a blow with a blunt solid object with a limited surface, direct fractures occur, while the inner plate of the rib is stretched, bends inward, and the outer one is compressed. Therefore, an incomplete fracture is often formed - only one inner plate. With complete fractures, damage to the visceral pleura and lung tissue is sometimes observed from fragments of a broken rib (ribs). Signs of compression on the outer plate are uneven, coarsely serrated, often with chipped edges of the bone; fractures of the cortical layer with a raised free end, which in the form of a visor hang over the edge of the fracture. Sometimes, from the fracture line, which has a transverse or oblique direction with respect to the length of the rib, multiple cracks extend in the direction of the length of the rib. Direct fractures from impacts with blunt solid objects with a limited surface are based on shear and bending deformations.

When hit by blunt solid objects with a predominant surface, fractures are formed due to bending deformation both at the site of impact (direct fractures) and along the distance from it (indirect fractures). These fractures can be located along several lines, capture several ribs, have a transverse or oblique direction. On the side of compression, fractures are in the form of a single line; on the side of tension, a free bone fragment may form.

When squeezing the chest, due to the deformation of bending and compression, as well as their combination, in the anterior-posterior direction, indirect fractures are formed on two opposite surfaces of the chest along several anatomical lines. The direction of the fracture lines is transverse or oblique, and if torsion is added, then it is spiral. Comminuted fractures in the form of one line on the side of compression, and two - on the side of tension with the formation of free bone fragments.

When studying rib fractures on a corpse, it is recommended that the damage to the rib be first examined on the spot, then isolated, freed from soft tissues and examined in more detail (by the expert himself or in the physical and technical department of the Bureau of Forensic Medical Examination).

FRACTURES OF THE PELVIS

Pelvic fractures can result from impact, pressure, or a combination of both.

When struck with blunt solid objects with a limited surface, due to shear deformations, bending, or a combination of them, direct fractures are formed, which are either perforated (in the region of the iliac wing) or linear (in the pubic bone).

During impacts with blunt solid objects with a predominant surface, when bending deformation and sometimes torsion are in effect, fractures can form both at the place of impact of the force and away from it. Fractures are linear or comminuted, spiral.

When squeezing the pelvis in the anterior-posterior and lateral directions from bending, compression, torsion deformations, both direct and indirect fractures, comminuted and multi-comminuted, compression, spiral, occur.

Particular attention should be paid to the features of pelvic fractures in children. In forensic practice, such fractures are quite common. Thus, according to L.E. Kuznetsov (1989), who studied in detail the biomechanics and morphology of pelvic fractures in children, they occur in 29.4% of all fatal injuries in children. The pelvis of a child (aged 1-13 years) has a number of significant anatomical and biomechanical features, as a result of which damage to the pelvic bones in children differs from those in adults both in localization and in the nature of bone tissue destruction. In particular, they can occur without disturbing the anatomical continuity of the pelvic ring. This requires the release of the pelvic bones from the periosteum when examining injuries on a corpse. In case of fractures of the pelvic ring with a violation of its anatomical continuity, destruction, as a rule, occurs at the border of bone and cartilage tissue.

Similar features of pelvic fractures in adolescents were established by Yu.A. Solokhina (1985).

Summing up everything that has been said about bone injuries with blunt solid objects, we can make a general conclusion that knowledge of the mechanisms of occurrence and morphology of a fracture makes it possible to solve issues important for the investigation and trial.

blunt objects- objects that do not have a sharp piercing end and a sharp cutting edge, that is, a blade.

Classification of blunt objects:

1. Parts of the human body - arm, leg, head

2. Objects used for striking or throwing - stones, sticks

3. Massive blunt objects, the damage of which is accompanied by the appearance of signs of a general concussion of the body - vehicles, falls from a height

Blunt objects are also distinguished:

a) with a limited surface - the boundaries of the traumatic surface (all or some of them) do not go beyond the surface of the damaged part of the body and with an unlimited surface - the dimensions of the traumatic surface of a blunt object go beyond the impact area

b) with a smooth (smooth) and with a non-smooth (rough) surface

c) according to the shape of the traumatic surface:

1) flat (triangular, square, rectangular, polygonal, oval, round)

2) angular (in the form of a dihedral angle - ribbed, in the form of a trihedral angle - vertices, etc.)

3) curve (spherical, cylindrical, etc.)

4) combined (flat and curve, flat and angular, etc.)

The mechanism of action of blunt objects:

1) blow with a blunt object - a complex short-term process of interaction between the body (or body part) of a person and a blunt object, in which the latter has an impulsive unilateral centripetal effect on the body or body part. The impact action can last less than 0.1-0.01 s. The shorter the impact time, the more energy is transferred to the affected body part and the greater the amount of damage. However, with an ultrashort impact time, a paradoxical effect occurs: the amount of damage becomes smaller, since only an insignificant part of the energy of the damaging object is transferred to the damaged part of the body. The last option in forensic practice occurs in exceptional cases. Impact action is exerted by both a moving object (for example, a thrown stone, protruding parts of a moving car, etc.) and a stationary one (for example, a headbutt when falling to the ground); massive objects, acting with great force, can lead to a concussion of the body or part of the human body.

2) compression is the process of interaction of the body or part of the body of a person with two, as a rule, massive, hard blunt objects, in which both of these objects, acting towards each other, have a bilateral centripetal effect on the body or part of the body. The compression time is calculated in seconds, and in some cases - minutes. Of the two squeezing objects, one is always mobile, the other is most often motionless, for example, pressing a person with a car body to stationary objects (house wall, fence, etc.)

3) stretching is the process of interaction of the body or part of the body of a person with two solid objects, which, acting in divergent directions, have a bilateral centrifugal effect on the body or part of the body. Stretching time - tenths of a second, less often - a few seconds. Of two objects, one is always mobile, the other is usually motionless. An immovable object fixes the body or part of the body (for example, the body of the machine), and another object has an eccentric action (rotating parts of the machine).

4) flexion or extension

5) twisting

6) friction - the process of surface interaction of the damaged surface of the body and the damaging surface of a blunt solid object, in which both contact surfaces are displaced in a tangential or tangential direction relative to one another. Both the damaged part of the body and the damaging object, or both, can be mobile.

Result of blunt force injuries: 1) bruises 2) abrasions 3) wounds 4) fractures 5) dislocations 6) fractures 7) separation of body parts (transport amputations: complete, partial)

6. Abrasion: definition of the concept, mechanism of formation, forensic significance.

Abrasion- this is a superficial violation of the integrity of the skin (up to the reticular layer of the dermis), less often the mucous membranes.

Scratch- linear abrasion.

Mechanism of Education: blow with a blunt object at an acute angle to the surface of the body (from 30 to 70 °).

1) the nature of the traumatic object - particles of a damaging object (pieces of wood, sand, inclusions of coal dust particles) are sometimes found on the surface of the abrasion

2) concretization of the features of the traumatic object

a) static action - crescentic abrasions from nails

b) dynamic action - strip shape

3) the place of application of the traumatic force - an abrasion is always located at the place of application of the traumatic force.

4) vitality - the diagnostic sign is the presence of reactive processes on the border between sedimentation and intact skin.

5) prescription - carried out according to the study of the crust:

a) the first 10-12 hours - the bottom of the abrasion is below the level of the surrounding tissues

b) the end of the 1st day - the bottom of the abrasion at the level of the surrounding tissues

c) 2-3rd day - the crust is above the level of the skin

d) 3-5 days - detachment of the crust along the periphery

e) 5-7th day - the crust disappears, at the site of the abrasion, a depigmentation area is formed that is lighter than normal skin.

f) 1.5-2 weeks - normalization of skin color

6) the direction of damage - a study by microscopy shows that at the beginning of the abrasion, the epidermis is evenly or tortuously torn off, and at the end it is turned towards the motionless skin or rises above it.

7) assumption of the purpose of violence

8) assumption of the number of traumatic effects

9) determination of the severity of bodily injury

7. Bruising: definition of the concept, mechanism of formation, forensic significance.

Bruise- accumulation of blood in soft tissues, mainly in the superficial layers (skin, subcutaneous tissue). They are formed as a result of rupture of the blood vessels of the skin and soft tissues with various types of mechanical action without breaking the skin. The spilled blood impregnates the damaged soft tissues. The deeper the hemorrhage is localized, the longer the color of the bruise does not appear.

Mechanism of Education: blow with a blunt object at a right or approximately right angle to the surface of the body.

1) the nature of the traumatic object

2) specifying the features of traumatic blunt objects - the shape of the bruise in some cases may turn out to be a negative reflection of the striking (contact) part of the object (when hit by a cylinder, there will be a strip-like enlightenment in the center).

3) prescription of damage - by color change:

a) 2-3 hours - purple-red color

b) 1.5-2 days - gradually turn blue towards the center along the periphery

c) 3-4 days - green

d) 5-6 days - yellow

e) after 2 weeks - gradually turns pale and disappears

4) intravital or posthumous occurrence.

Macro-signs of intravital bruising:

Signs of inflammation (edema and hyperemia)

- "thin" bruising - a section of subcutaneous fat or skin is evenly saturated with blood on the incision

- "thick" bruising - when excess blood coagulates and forms a cavity

Micro-signs of intravital bruising:

Signs of inflammation (arterial hyperemia and edema, leukocyte infiltration)

Extensive hemorrhage (occupies at least 1.5-2 fields of view under a low magnification microscope)

From the bulk of the outflowing blood, we see the separation of several red blood cells that have spread further than the hemorrhage (into the sweat glands and surrounding tissues)

5) the place of application of the traumatic force - as a rule, a bruise occurs at the place of application of the force, but it can also be in the underlying sections (when you hit the back of the nose, swelling of the eyelids occurs, especially the lower one; when you hit the back of the thigh, the bruise is found in the popliteal fossa)

6) assumption of the purpose of violence (bruising on the inner thigh during rape)

7) assumption of the number of traumatic effects

8) determination of the severity of bodily injury

8. Wound: definition of the concept, mechanisms of formation, forensic significance.

Wound- violation of the integrity of the skin, subcutaneous fat and deeper tissues (muscles, etc.)

Education mechanism: hit with a blunt object.

Types of wounds with blunt objects:

1) bruised

3) crushed

4) bitten

5) patchwork

6) scalped

Characteristics of a bruised wound:

1. shape - atypical shape (slit-like, star-shaped, linear, arcuate)

2. Edges - uneven, wavy, raw, bruised, comparable, no tissue defect

3. ends (corners of the wound) - rounded

4. the wound is shallow, i.e. length and width greater than depth

5. detection of tissue bridges in the depth of wounds (in the area of ​​corners, since a large energy acts in the center)

6. external bleeding

SME: wounds caused by blunt objects indicate:

1. variant of traumatic impact (impact, compression, stretching, friction);

2. prescription of the injury:

A. within the 1st hour: an increase in the activity of aminopeptidase (detected histochemically); stases, thrombi, secondary foci of necrosis are formed in parallel

b. after 4 hours - a perivascular accumulation of segmented leukocytes appears

V. after 6 hours - macrophages and single mast cells can be found in the area of ​​inflammation

after 12-15 hours - mitoses appear in the tissues

by the end of the day - the first signs of regeneration of the epithelium along the edges of the wound

e. on the 3rd day - neoplasms of budding capillaries, the appearance of granulation tissue

and. after 1 week - the structure of the healing wound is made up of collagen fibers

h. after 1-1.5 months, the scars take their permanent shape, elastic fibers appear in them, the capillaries almost completely disappear. Microscopically, the scar: thinning of the epidermis, absence of normal skin papillae, sebaceous and sweat glands, coarsening (hyalinosis after 3-6 months).

Infected wounds take longer to heal.

3. blunt nature of the impact;

4. number of traumatic impacts;

5. the shape, dimensions of the traumatic surface and the material of the blunt object, the nature of foreign layers on its surface - blunt objects acting as a spherical or cylindrical surface cause rectilinear wounds with additional edge breaks. They are surrounded by a relatively wide sedimentation. The edges of such wounds are often crushed.

6. place, direction and strength of the traumatic effect - the walls of wounds arising from a perpendicular impact are sheer; when struck at an angle, one of the walls of the wound is beveled, the other is undermined.

9. Fractures: definition of the concept, mechanisms of formation. Morphological signs of direct and indirect fractures of the ribs.

bone fractures- violation of their anatomical integrity, accompanied by damage to the surrounding soft tissues to a greater or lesser extent. There are fractures:

A) straight- arise from direct contact traumatic action. In the place of contact of the traumatic object with the bone, destruction, crushing and mutual layering of bone structures occur. As a result, small defects are observed at the place of application of the force due to the chipping of the bone substance. Elevated flat bone plates are visible along the edges of the defect, often overlapping each other and giving the impression of a tiled roof. The edges of direct fractures are coarsely serrated broken lines.

b) indirect (fractures throughout)- arise from indirect action. The edges of indirect fractures are a finely serrated line.

Mechanisms of Education fractures of tubular bones:

A) bone shear- occurs from a sharp blow with an edge, edge or narrow limited surface of a blunt object. Shear fractures are always straight. They have the character of transverse or oblique transverse. A small cleavage of a compact substance is formed at the place where the force is applied. Thin cracks extend from the edges of the fracture, the free ends of which indicate the place of impact. Sometimes the ends of the cracks extending from the opposite edges of the fracture unite and form a large fragment at the site of impact, most often diamond-shaped.

b) bone fold- leads to a change in mechanical stresses in the bones: a zone of tension appears on the convex surface of the bend, and compression occurs on the curved surface. Since the bone is less resistant to stretching, a transverse crack forms on the convex surface of the diaphysis, which extends to the lateral surfaces, where it bifurcates. The ends of the crack are connected on the compression side, forming a large fragment. Flexion of the tubular bone can occur with transverse pressure on the diaphysis (for example, when moving with a car wheel), with longitudinal pressure on the bone, and also with bending of the bone, one of the epiphyses of which is fixed.

V) bone compression in the longitudinal direction - underlies the formation of impacted fractures. They are localized in the metadiaphyseal region and represent a local compression destruction of the beam structure, which is often combined with fractures that split the diaphysis in the longitudinal direction. Such fractures occur when falling from a great height onto straightened legs.

G) bone twisting- represents its rotation around the longitudinal axis while simultaneously fixing one of its (bone) ends. In this case, helical fractures occur (often observed in skiers).

The separation of the bone substance is possible only in the area of ​​attachment of the tendons. The detached part of the bone mass is usually small. As a rule, such fractures are observed with sharp tendon tension in young subjects with incomplete ossification processes.

Fractures of flat bones depend on the size and shape of the traumatic surface of a blunt solid object and the variant of its action: impact or compression.

A) From the blow unilateral direct fractures occur at the site of application of force. Objects with a limited impact surface acting with little force can cause a linear fracture (crack) that expands in the direction of impact. Several radially diverging fractures may also form at the site of application of the force. Additional cracks may radiate from some of them, which, connecting and mutually intersecting, can form comminuted fractures in a limited area of ​​the cranial vault. With stronger impacts, depressed fractures are formed, corresponding to the size of the traumatic surface and often being a negative reflection of its shape. Along the edges of such fractures, fragments arranged in steps can form, which gives reason to call these fractures terrace-shaped. High-strength blows can cause a complete shift of the bone area with the formation of a perforated fracture, which reflects the shape and size of the traumatic surface of the object. A small impact, caused by an unbounded surface of a blunt hard object, can lead to the formation of one or two or three radially divergent cracks. When hitting a large force in the place of its application, a focus of comminuted fractures is formed, limited by an arcuate crack. Linear cracks radiate from this source. The stronger the blow, the more area focus of comminuted fractures. In the zone of the focus of comminuted fractures, deformation in the form of a flattening of the skull is noticeable.

b) When squeezed forces are applied to mutually opposite surfaces of the head and are directed towards each other. In places where force is applied, foci of finely comminuted fractures are formed, surrounded by one or more concentric arcuate cracks following one after another. The foci of comminuted fractures are united by rectilinear or somewhat curved cracks, showing the direction of compression. Compression is often accompanied by deformation of the head, up to its complete flattening. In rare cases, a single linear crack is formed during compression. It arises from stretching (cracking) of the bone outside the place of application of force and is an indirect fracture.

With several blows to the head, the line of fracture formed from the subsequent blow will be interrupted by the lines of fractures that have arisen from previous blows.

When hitting the chest at the site of impacts, straight, transverse or comminuted fractures of the ribs or sternum occur, accompanied by ruptures of the parietal pleura. When compressed, multiple bilateral double and triple fractures of the ribs are formed: direct fractures occur at the places where the force is applied, and indirect fractures at a distance from the place where the force is applied.

Spinal fractures from a local impact lead to comminuted fractures of the bodies and processes of individual vertebrae. Under the action of forces along the axis of the spine, compression fractures of the vertebral bodies are formed. With excessively sharp flexion of the spine, dislocations and wedge-shaped compression of the anterior sections of the bodies of the cervical vertebrae most often occur (with extension, the posterior sections). Such fractures are usually accompanied by damage to the ligamentous apparatus of the spine. These fractures are not uncommon in traffic accidents, and the mechanism of their occurrence is called whiplash injuries.

When struck in the pelvic area in the place of application of force, unilateral direct single, or double transverse, or comminuted fractures occur. When the pelvis is compressed, bilateral double vertical fractures are formed: direct fractures of the pelvic bones are found in the places where the force is applied, and at a distance, indirect fractures of the pelvic bones. Microstructural changes in the fracture zone also make it possible to differentiate the mechanism of violation of the integrity of the bone tissue.

SME - fractures allow you to establish:

1. blunt nature of the impact;

2. fact, type, place, direction, strength and variant of traumatic impact;

3. prescription of injury;

4. number and sequence of blows;

5. the shape and size of the traumatic surface of a blunt object.

Direct fracture of the rib (extensor) - a fracture of the rib that occurs at the site of application of the traumatic force.

Indirect fracture of the rib (flexion, structural) - a fracture of the rib that occurs at a distance from the place of application of the traumatic force.

Morphological signs of direct and indirect fractures.

With a direct fracture, the fragments are directed inside the chest, the fracture line is oblique, signs of compression are on the outer bone plate, and sprains are on the inner one. With an indirect fracture, the fragments are directed outward of the chest, the fracture line is transverse, signs of compression are on the inside of the bone plate, and stretching is on the outside.

Signs of compression:

The fracture line is coarsely serrated, the teeth are sharp

Chipping of the bone substance (loss of bone substance)

Chipped bone

The edges are completely incomparable

Signs of stretching:

The edges are relatively even, may be finely serrated, the tops of the teeth are rounded

No chips or cracks

Edges are fully comparable