- Title
- Immersion of bovine eyeballs after 1 hour in seawater does not result in elevation of postmortem vitreous humor sodium and chloride levels
- Creator
- Anne, Sravan; Tse, Rexson; Oldmeadow, Christopher; Attia, John R.; Cala, Allan D.
- Relation
- American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology Vol. 37, Issue 2, p. 108-111
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/PAF.0000000000000229
- Publisher
- Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2016
- Description
- Elevations in postmortem vitreous sodium chloride (PMVSC) levels may help in differentiating saltwater/seawater drowning (SWD) deaths from immersion deaths not related to drowning (DNRD). It is unclear whether the elevation is related to blood/plasma electrolyte changes after inhalation of seawater as hypothesized in SWDs or possibly caused by electrolyte diffusion and/or osmosis across the outer coats of the eyeball during immersion. Aim: To investigate the changes in bovine PMVSC levels at different time points while immersed in seawater. Methods: Bovine eyeballs were obtained from an abattoir and randomized into 2 groups: A) submerged in seawater ("wet" group) or b) placed in an impermeable plastic bag that was immersed in seawater ("dry" group). The PMVSC levels from 6 eyeballs were measured from each group (without replacement) at 30 minutes, 1 hour, 6 hours, and 12 hours. Results: There was no significant difference in mean PMVSC levels between the 2 groups at 30-minute and 1-hour intervals. A significant difference was noted from 6 hours onward. Discussion: There is no statistically significant elevation in bovine PMVSC levels when immersed in seawater for up to 1 hour. Assuming similar physical properties in humans, any elevations in PMVSC levels in bodies immersed in seawater for less than 1 hour should not be caused by immersion.
- Subject
- saltwater drowning; vitreous humor
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1348942
- Identifier
- uon:30288
- Identifier
- ISSN:0195-7910
- Language
- eng
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