Dipartimento di Morfologia Umana e Scienze Biomediche, Sezione di Medicina Legale e delle Assicurazioni, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Luigi Mangiagalli, 37, 20133, Milan, Italy.
Int J Legal Med. 2011 Jan;125(1):21-6. doi: 10.1007/s00414-009-0394-z. Epub 2009 Dec 3.
Metal structures--especially of stainless steel, titanium and their alloys (biomaterials)--are widely used in orthopaedic practice and the subject of constant study in bioengineering and preventive medicine. This study presents the first experience of forensic research into the presence of permanent tissue variations around metal implants in various bone structures for the purpose of identification, with particular reference to skeletal remains or severely decomposed corpses in the absence of other identifying elements. The evaluation was conducted on 12 corpses who had undergone osteosynthesis intra-vitam, whose implants were still in place or had been removed, in comparison with five controls who had never undergone osteosynthesis. Bone fragments taken during autopsy were subjected to histopathological and scanning electron microscope-energy dispersive electroscopy examination in order to reveal and characterise any metal particles originating from osteosynthesis. The study enabled the discovery of intra-bone metal particles in tissues treated by osteosynthesis even in bone areas where the implants had been removed and even where there were no longer any radiological signs of their application. These results are therefore of considerable forensic importance, especially in the area of identification, providing a valid means of recognition beyond that of the well-established use of in situ metal implants.
金属结构 - 特别是不锈钢、钛及其合金（生物材料） - 在矫形实践中得到广泛应用，并且是生物工程和预防医学中不断研究的课题。本研究首次介绍了法医研究在各种骨骼结构中金属植入物周围永久性组织变化的存在情况，目的是进行身份识别，特别是在没有其他识别元素的情况下，对骨骼遗骸或严重分解的尸体进行识别。评估对象为 12 名生前接受过骨内骨合成的尸体，其植入物仍在原位或已取出，与 5 名从未接受过骨内骨合成的对照组进行比较。在尸检过程中取出的骨碎片进行了组织病理学和扫描电子显微镜 - 能量色散电子显微镜检查，以揭示和表征源自骨内骨合成的任何金属颗粒。该研究发现，即使在已去除植入物的骨区域，甚至在不再有其应用的放射学迹象的骨区域，组织中也存在骨内金属颗粒。因此，这些结果具有相当大的法医重要性，特别是在识别领域，提供了一种有效的识别手段，超越了已建立的原位金属植入物的应用。
