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Postmortem Analysis of Electrogram Records from an Implantable Cardioverter‐Defibrillator ( ICD ) in the Reconstruction of a Road Traffic Accident
Author(s) -
Kaliszan Michał,
DaniłowiczSzymanowicz Ludmiła,
Kempa Maciej,
Tomczak Ewa,
Krzyżanowska Marta,
Jankowski Zbigniew,
Raczak Grzegorz
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of forensic sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.715
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1556-4029
pISSN - 0022-1198
DOI - 10.1111/1556-4029.14037
Subject(s) - medicine , ventricular fibrillation , autopsy , implantable cardioverter defibrillator , traffic accident , medical emergency , cardiology , forensic engineering , engineering
Abstract The case of a 69‐year‐old man, equipped with an ICD and suffering from several chronic cardiac diseases, who died in a car accident, was presented. We analyzed electrogram records from the ICD explanted from the body during the autopsy, which showed that the driver had suffered from malignant ventricular arrhythmia—ventricular fibrillation ( VF ). A thorough analysis of the details of the accident, as well as the timing of VF and the rhythm observed after the discharge of the ICD showed that the direct cause of the accident was the episode of arrhythmia resulting in a loss of consciousness. Therefore, the presented case illustrates the usefulness of postmortem analysis of electrogram records from ICD s in the reconstruction of road traffic accidents. In such cases, if the victims are implanted with ICD s, it should be a routine procedure performed by forensic pathologists.