Da Broi Ugo, Moreschi Carlo, Colatutto Antonio, Marcon Barbara, Zago Silvia
Department of Medical and Biological Sciences, Section of Forensic Medicine, University of Udine, Italy.
Department of Medical and Biological Sciences, Section of Forensic Medicine, University of Udine, Italy.
J Forensic Leg Med. 2017 Aug;50:12-19. doi: 10.1016/j.jflm.2017.06.002. Epub 2017 Jun 19.
Metallic mercury may be self-injected for suicidal or self-harm purposes or sometimes for superstitious or other inadvisable reasons. Local tissue or systemic consequences such as mercurialism can frequently occur in cases of subcutaneous or deep injection, while death due to pulmonary embolism and cardiac, brain, hepatic or renal toxicity may occur in cases of high dosage intravenous administration. The aim of this review is to focus on the diagnostic difficulties facing coroners and forensic pathologists when the courts require confirmation that evidence of self-injection of metallic mercury is the result of suicide or self-harming. Forensic examination performed on the corpses of victims who died in or out of hospital or on surviving injured or intoxicated victims showing signs of mercurialism, demands the careful evaluation of the death scene, of all related circumstances and of the clinical and autopsy data. Close interaction between forensic pathologists and toxicologists is also needed to identify and quantify mercury levels in blood, urine and tissue.
