Pulmonary thromboembolism on unenhanced postmortem computed tomography: Feasibility and findings

Ampanozi, Garyfalia; Held, Ulrike; Ruder, Thomas D; Ross, Steffen G; Schweitzer, Wolf; Fornaro, Juergen; Franckenberg, Sabine; Thali, Michael J; Flach, Patricia M

doi:10.1016/j.legalmed.2016.04.005

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Ampanozi, G., Held, U., Ruder, T. D., Ross, S. G., Schweitzer, W., Fornaro, J., Franckenberg, S., Thali, M. J., & Flach, P. M. (2016). Pulmonary thromboembolism on unenhanced postmortem computed tomography: Feasibility and findings. Legal Medicine, 20, 68–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.legalmed.2016.04.005

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of diagnosing fatal pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) with unenhanced postmortem computed tomography (PMCT). Materials and methods: Twelve cases with autopsy confirmed PTE and matched controls (n = 19) were retrospectively examined for PTE signs on PMCT. The following variables were evaluated: edema of the lower extremities (areal and Hounsfield Unit measurements) and observer dependent patterns of the morphology of the sedimentation in the pulmonary arteries and trunk.