Forensic Medicine & Clinical Toxicology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Egypt.
Forensic Medicine & Clinical Toxicology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Egypt.
J Forensic Leg Med. 2024 Aug;106:102737. doi: 10.1016/j.jflm.2024.102737. Epub 2024 Aug 12.
Alcohol use upsurges the risk for many chronic ill-health consequences such as hepatitis, malignancies, and disastrous outcomes like road traffic accidents ending in fatal injuries. Biochemical and toxicological analysis of different body fluids is crucial for identifying the cause of death and postmortem interval in many forensic cases. Blood, urine, and vitreous fluid are the most valuable body fluids for detecting alcohol during any toxicological analysis. Alcohol is responsible for widespread morbidity and mortality worldwide. Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is a necessary toxicological test to investigate various crime and accident scenes. This study comprehensively explores the demographic characteristics, BAC distribution, and correlations of alcohol concentrations in postmortem and living cases. Postmortem cases (N = 166) reveal intriguing demographic patterns, with notable variations in year distribution, nationality, sex, age groups, occupation, smoking habits, place of death, and psychiatric history. Living cases (N = 483) exhibit distinct demographic profiles, emphasizing differences in year distribution, nationality, sex, age groups, and smoking habits. Analysis of BAC distribution reveals diverse patterns in both postmortem and living cases, providing valuable insights into the prevalence of different BAC levels in each group. Correlation analyses unveil strong associations between alcohol concentrations in various biological samples in postmortem cases, highlighting the interdependence of blood, vitreous, and urine alcohol concentrations. Conversely, living cases display a moderate positive correlation between blood and urine alcohol concentrations. Comparative analyses showcase significant differences in mean alcohol concentrations between postmortem and living cases, suggesting variations in alcohol metabolism and distribution. These findings underscore the importance of considering temporal factors in interpreting alcohol concentrations in forensic and clinical contexts. In conclusion, this study enhances our understanding of alcohol-related incidents by delineating demographic profiles, BAC distributions, and correlations between different biological samples. Such insights are crucial for refining investigative and clinical approaches, contributing to the broader fields of forensic science and public health.
饮酒会增加许多慢性健康不良后果的风险，如肝炎、恶性肿瘤，以及道路交通事故等灾难性后果，导致致命伤害。在许多法医案例中，对不同体液进行生化和毒理学分析对于确定死因和死后时间间隔至关重要。血液、尿液和玻璃体是检测毒理学分析中酒精的最有价值的体液。酒精是导致全球广泛发病和死亡的原因。血液酒精浓度 (BAC) 是调查各种犯罪和事故现场的必要毒理学测试。本研究全面探讨了死后和存活案例中的人口统计学特征、BAC 分布以及酒精浓度的相关性。死后案例（N=166）揭示了有趣的人口统计学模式，在年份分布、国籍、性别、年龄组、职业、吸烟习惯、死亡地点和精神病史方面存在显著差异。存活案例（N=483）呈现出明显不同的人口统计学特征，强调了年份分布、国籍、性别、年龄组和吸烟习惯的差异。BAC 分布分析揭示了死后和存活案例中不同的分布模式，为每个群体中不同 BAC 水平的患病率提供了有价值的见解。相关性分析揭示了死后案例中各种生物样本中酒精浓度之间的强烈关联，突出了血液、玻璃体液和尿液酒精浓度的相互依存关系。相比之下，存活案例中血液和尿液酒精浓度之间呈中度正相关。比较分析显示死后和存活案例之间的平均酒精浓度存在显著差异，表明酒精代谢和分布的变化。这些发现强调了在解释法医和临床背景下的酒精浓度时考虑时间因素的重要性。总之，本研究通过描绘人口统计学特征、BAC 分布以及不同生物样本之间的相关性，增强了我们对与酒精相关事件的理解。这些见解对于改进调查和临床方法至关重要，有助于推进法医科学和公共卫生领域的发展。
