Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, University of Messina, Via Consolare Valeria, 1, 98125 Messina, Italy.
Department of Human Pathology in Adult and Developmental Age "Gaetano Barresi", University of Messina, Via Consolare Valeria, 1, 98125 Messina, Italy.
Tomography. 2022 Apr 1;8(2):961-973. doi: 10.3390/tomography8020077.
The need of a minimally invasive approach, especially in cases of cultural or religious oppositions to the internal examination of the body, has led over the years to the introduction of CT (PMCT) methodologies within forensic investigations for the comprehension of the cause of death in selected cases (e.g., traumatic deaths, acute hemorrhages, etc.), as well as for personal identification. The impossibility to yield clear information concerning the coronary arteries due to the lack of an active circulation to adequately distribute contrast agents has been subsequently overcome by the introduction of coronary-targeted PMCT Angiography (PMCTA), which has revealed useful in the detection of stenoses related to calcifications and/or atherosclerotic plaques, as well as in the suspicion of thrombosis. In parallel, due to the best ability to study the soft tissues, cardiac MR (PMMR) methodologies have been further implemented, which proved suitable for the detection and aging of infarcted areas, and for cardiomyopathies. Hence, the purpose of the present work to shed light on the state of the art concerning the value of both coronary-targeted PMCTA and PMMR in the diagnosis of coronary artery disease and/or myocardial infarction as causes of death, further evaluating their suitability as alternatives or complementary approaches to standard autopsy and histologic investigations.
微创方法的需求，特别是在文化或宗教反对对身体进行内部检查的情况下，多年来导致 CT（PMCT）方法在法医调查中被引入，以理解选定案例（例如，创伤性死亡、急性出血等）中的死因以及进行个人识别。由于缺乏活跃的循环来充分分布对比剂，因此无法获得有关冠状动脉的明确信息，随后通过引入冠状动脉靶向 PMCT 血管造影（PMCTA）来克服这一问题，该方法在检测与钙化和/或动脉粥样硬化斑块相关的狭窄以及疑血栓形成方面非常有用。同时，由于能够更好地研究软组织，心脏磁共振（PMMR）方法也得到了进一步的应用，该方法被证明适用于检测和老化梗死区域以及心肌病。因此，本研究旨在阐明冠状动脉靶向 PMCTA 和 PMMR 在诊断冠状动脉疾病和/或心肌梗死作为死因方面的最新价值，进一步评估它们作为标准尸检和组织学检查的替代或补充方法的适用性。
