Kaplan J A, Siegler R W, Schmunk G A
New Hampshire State Medical Examiner's Office, Concord 03301, USA.
Am J Forensic Med Pathol. 1998 Mar;19(1):19-22. doi: 10.1097/00000433-199803000-00003.
Infants who die of hypernatremic dehydration usually demonstrate at autopsy an underlying condition or disease process that predisposes to increased water loss. In the absence of such findings, forensic concerns may focus sharply on parental or caretaker neglect as an underlying cause of death. In this case report, we describe unrecognized fatal hypernatremic dehydration in two exclusively breast-fed neonates due solely to failure of maternal lactation. We further describe epidemiologic and etiologic features of such deaths and discuss forensic difficulties encountered in their certification.
死于高渗性脱水的婴儿尸检时通常显示存在一种易导致水分丢失增加的潜在病症或疾病过程。若未发现此类情况，法医关注的重点可能会急剧转向将父母或看护人的疏忽作为潜在死因。在本病例报告中，我们描述了两名纯母乳喂养的新生儿因母亲泌乳失败而发生的未被识别的致命性高渗性脱水。我们还描述了此类死亡的流行病学和病因学特征，并讨论了在开具死亡证明时遇到的法医鉴定难题。
