Anatomical Pathology Department, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
Forensic Sci Int. 2013 Dec 10;233(1-3):1-6. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2013.08.008. Epub 2013 Aug 18.
Sudden deaths are common findings in Rivers state of Nigeria. The victims of such deaths are subjects, of coroners' autopsies, and the records there from constitute important sources of epidemiological data.
To determine the pattern, causes and demographic features of all deaths reported to the coroner for medico legal autopsies in Rivers state of Nigeria.
Retrospective descriptive study on reports of coroner autopsies carried out between January 2000 and December 2010 in different mortuaries located across Rivers state was undertaken. The autopsies were unlimited and standardized. Information analyzed were: gender, age, circumstances of death and, autopsy-defined cause of death.
Of the 1987 cases reviewed, 83.4% were males. The age range was 2 weeks to 98 years with a mean of, 31.7 years. The peak age range was 21-30 years with 46.5%. The manners of deaths in descending order include: homicides with 50.5%, accidents with 32%, sudden natural deaths with 14.1%, maternal deaths with 2.6% and suicides with 0.8%. Males were most affected in homicidal death with average male:female ratio of 12.4:1. Gunshots constituted the commonest means of homicidal deaths, with 67.9% while decapitation was the least with 0.1%. The commonest cause of accidental death was, road traffic accident with 63.6%. Cardiovascular system pathologies were the commonest causes of natural deaths with 46.1%. Illegal abortions with 41.1% were the commonest causes of maternal, deaths and all suicidal cases were committed by hanging.
Homicides were by far the commonest findings of medico legal autopsies, followed by accidental and natural deaths respectively while suicides were the least in Rivers state of Nigeria. Firearms were the, most frequently used weapons for homicides and road traffic accidents remain the major causes of accidental deaths while cardiovascular system pathologies account for the highest proportion of sudden natural deaths and suicides are committed by hanging. Males within the productive age, brackets of 20-49 years are more affected by sudden deaths of all manners.
在尼日利亚的里弗斯州，猝死是常见的发现。此类死亡的受害者是验尸官尸检的对象，尸检记录构成了流行病学数据的重要来源。
确定在尼日利亚里弗斯州提交给验尸官进行法医尸检的所有死亡报告的模式、原因和人口统计学特征。
对 2000 年 1 月至 2010 年 12 月在不同太平间进行的验尸官尸检报告进行回顾性描述性研究。尸检是无限和标准化的。分析的信息包括：性别、年龄、死亡情况和尸检定义的死因。
在审查的 1987 例病例中，83.4%为男性。年龄范围为 2 周至 98 岁，平均为 31.7 岁。高峰年龄范围为 21-30 岁，占 46.5%。死亡率依次为：凶杀案 50.5%，事故 32%，突发自然死亡 14.1%，孕产妇死亡 2.6%，自杀 0.8%。男性在凶杀死亡中受影响最大，平均男女比例为 12.4:1。枪击是凶杀案最常见的手段，占 67.9%，而斩首则是最少的，占 0.1%。意外死亡的最常见原因是道路交通意外，占 63.6%。心血管系统疾病是自然死亡的最常见原因，占 46.1%。非法堕胎占孕产妇死亡的 41.1%，所有自杀病例均为上吊自杀。
在尼日利亚的里弗斯州，凶杀案是法医尸检中最常见的发现，其次是意外和自然死亡，而自杀则是最少的。枪支是凶杀案最常使用的武器，道路交通意外仍然是意外死亡的主要原因，而心血管系统疾病占突发自然死亡的比例最高，自杀则是上吊自杀。20-49 岁之间的生产年龄组的男性更容易受到各种原因导致的猝死的影响。
