Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.
To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to upgrade your browser.
2022, RJLM
Skydiving incidents during flight are common, a decisive factor in what concerns the traumatic injuries severity being represented by special techniques-to prevent the conversion of incidents into accidents. The injury pattern is revealing a polymorphism related to every single incident. In rare cases these incidents conclude with severe bodily injuries or even death. In this paper, two cases of skydiving accidents will be reviewed, one concluded with the survival of the skydiver, and the other with the person's death, by analyzing the operational procedures, their usage, the severity of the traumatic injuries and other skydiving accidents from international literature.
Forensic Science International: Reports, 2021
Parachuting accidents are very uncommon and mostly related to landing and incorrect procedures. In these cases, the cause of death is usually easily identified but the events leading up to death are usually a matter for investigation. We describe the case of a former military parachutist who died after civilian skydiving. A total body computed tomography scan, an external examination, and a complete medico-legal autopsy were performed. Furthermore, the fatality was filmed from two different observation points so the specific dynamic of the events and the injuries observed could be explained. This unusual case highlights the importance of a multidisciplinary forensic investigation.
British Journal of Sports Medicine, 2007
Objective: To create a basis for prevention of modern skydiving injuries. Design: Descriptive epidemiological study. Setting: National total material. Patients: Data on all reported injury events (n = 257) in Swedish skydiving 1999-2003 (total 539 885 jumps) were retrieved from the Swedish Parachute Association. Non-fatally injured skydivers were sent a questionnaire asking for event and injury details (response rate 89%), and supplementary hospital records were retrieved for the most serious injuries (n = 85). Human, equipment and environmental factors were assessed for risk. Main Outcome Measurements: Frequency and severity of injuries. Results: Incidence of non-fatal injury events was 48 per 100 000 jumps. The lower extremities, spine and shoulders were important regions of injury. The most serious injuries were experienced by licensed skydivers, but students in training had a higher injury rate and more often left the sport because of the injury. Of two student-training systems, one had an incidence less than half that of the other. Conclusions: A basis for prevention was created, showing a potential for reduction of frequency and severity of injuries with training and technical interventions.
Case studies of freefall injuries suggest that most falls from heights result in lower extremity, pelvic, and vertebral fractures. These injuries are largely a consequence of the fact that most falls are accidental with victims landing feet first. This study investigates whether human behavioral response affects body orientation at impact and whether the human body tends to align in a particular way as a result of physical laws. The investigation was undertaken by observing nine experimental falls of an anthropomorphic dummy from a height of 65 ft (9.8 m). In all nine falls, the dummy landed horizontally, suggesting that the human form has a tendency to align horizontally during freefall for falls greater than 50 ft (15.24 m). This has important implications for the potential use of injury patterns in the deduction of pre-fall circumstances, which are discussed here with respect to a case study of a fall victim.
Journal of Sports Medicine, 2014
The objective was to illuminate the experience of injuries and the process of injury reporting within the Swedish skydiving culture. Data contained narrative interviews that were subsequently analyzed with content analysis. Seventeen respondents (22–44 years) were recruited at three skydiving drop zones in Sweden. In the results injury events related to the full phase of a skydive were described. Risk of injury is individually viewed as an integrated element of the recreational activity counterbalanced by its recreational value. The human factor of inadequate judgment such as miscalculation and distraction dominates the descriptions as causes of injuries. Organization and leadership act as facilitators or constrainers for reporting incidents and injuries. On the basis of this study it is interpreted that safety work and incident reporting in Swedish skydiving may be influenced more by local drop zone culture than the national association regulations. Formal and informal hierarchical...
Archives of Criminology and Forensic Sciences, 2021
The article analyzes conceptual framework for specific expertise use while conducting forensic examinations related to aviation accidents. Foundations of such activities have been developed. In particular, it is stressed that effective implementation of criminal proceedings depends to a greater extent on the results of expert researches, especially if it is a complex process of aviation accident investigation. Similarly, the quality of expert researches depends on organization of research institutes activity regarding creation of effective methodologies for the analysis of different physical evidence obtained at the aviation accident scene. By using specific expertise, employees of forensic institutions independently or jointly with employees of other specialized institutions, law enforcement agencies, specialists-doctors can advance methods of expert research and, consequently, combat criminal offenses or ensure timely detection of the offender whereabouts. The possibility of expan...
OBJECTIVE To determine if using a parachute prevents death or major traumatic injury when jumping from an aircraft.
Introduction: Falling from height is considered a major public health problem being the second leading cause of unintentional injury death, after road traffic injuries. Falling represents a specific type of blunt force trauma, which is produced by rapid vertical deceleration and impact. There is no adequate literature available with reference to the type and pattern of injuries sustained in cases of falling from heights. Aim of the work: The aim of the present study was to analyze the different patterns of injuries sustained in victims of falling from different heights looking for recording possible uncommon patterns of injuries and to detect the incidence of substance abuse among them. Patients and methods: This study is a cross sectional statistical study of 200 cases of falling from different heights presented to Alkasr Alainy Emergency department during a period of six months from July to December 2013. Data collected included age, gender, occupation, circumstances of fall, height of falling, nature of landing surface, site and type of injuries sustained due to falling, besides calculation of injury severity score (ISS) for each case. In addition; urine dipstick test for detection of drugs of abuse was done for each case using the commercial kit (Abon Biopharm, Hangzhou, China). Results: Half of the cases fell from heights of one meter or less. Except for the three suicidal cases, the rest of the cases fell from height accidentally. The distribution of injuries took one of two forms; injuries in combined multiple sites of the body or injuries in isolated body region (uncommon pattern of injuries in cases of falling from height). At a height of one meter or less (low level), more than half of the cases had their injuries in the extremities while in higher heights, injuries were in combined multiple sites of the body. Blunt force wounds of the skin & subcutaneous tissue were the most common types of injuries in all cases. Urine dipstick test was positive in 21.5 % of cases. Only tramadol and cannabis were detected. Conclusion: It was concluded that falling from low heights is a very common phenomenon with its resultant injuries especially in the extremities. Injuries in isolated body region are not uncommon in cases of falling from height and represent one of the medicolegal challenges. External blunt force wounds were the most common type of injuries due to falling. In addition substance abuse is among the factors leading to falling from height.
Journal of Forensic Sciences, 2018
Fatal falls from heights (˃3 m) often result in blunt force trauma (BFT) to the skeleton. The fracture patterns that result from this BFT mechanism are well understood in forensic anthropology and forensic pathology; however, details of the specific types of fractures that result remain poorly documented. The aim of this study was to provide a detailed examination of the types of fractures that may result from fatal high falls. Fractures were recorded from 95 full-body postmortem computed tomography scans of individuals known to have died from a high fall. Trauma was then analyzed taking into account the extrinsic and intrinsic variables known to influence a fall using multiple logistic regression. A total of 339 types of fractures were classified, of which 16 were significantly associated with this BFT mechanism. Classified fracture types will augment anthropological interpretations of the circumstances of death from BFT in cases of suspected high falls.
Medico-Legal Journal of Sri Lanka 7(1):32, 2016
It may not be possible to determine the manner of death, in circumstances such as death following fall from height. When a dead body is found in front of a tall building, the ascertainment of the manner of death is difficult and in this case, the importance of a psychological autopsy in such circumstance is discussed. Middle-aged female with bronchial asthma, arterial hypertension, chronic venous insufficiency, Forestier disease, hyperlordosis of lumbar spine and vitamin D deficiency developed bilateral leg swelling and rash following 14 hours of air travel. Duplex scan excluded lower limb venous thrombosis. She did not have past history of psychiatric disorder but suddenly developed aggressive abnormal behaviour, confusion and bizarre activities. She removed her clothes and finally jumped off from 6th floor of her residency. She was succumbed to death due to multiple injuries following fall from height. No suicidal letter was recovered from the scene. The manner of death was ascertained as suicide based on eyewitness evidence. Her sudden onset of abnormal and violent behaviour may be an act of automatism without volitional control due to undiagnosed inorganic or organic disease of the brain. The witnessed suicidal behaviour was reverted to accident as a manner of death. The importance of psychological autopsy and teamwork between Forensic Pathologist and Forensic Psychiatrist in suspicious circumstances to ascertain the manner of death is highlighted. Labelling as suicide will end up in negative social stigma and loss of insurance claims.
Acta morphologica et anthropologica, 2023
Industrial fallings from height as cases rаise practical dilemma about the exact cause and the mechanism of death by forensic expert point of view. A 51-year-old man was subjected to a medico-legal autopsy at University Hospital St. George, Plovdiv, Bulgaria. An eye witness had seen the person sustaining injuries after a fall from a height from 3 rd floor of construction building (around height of 10 meters). During the corpse examination a combination of two types of different trauma-electrical trauma and blunt force trauma, was stated. Such cases are extremely rare in the routine forensic practice and there usually is a serious diagnostic forensic dilemma about the exact cause and the exact mechanism of death. New forensic approach over the corpse tries to give conclusion about these categories and tries to fix these problematic points in the given case.
A reported case of death due to blunt trauma to the head due to falling from a height of approximately 10 meters from the top of a 3rd floor building. On the head of the victim looked skull fracture and brain tissue discharge. It is estimated that the victim fell with his head hitting the floor vertically because there were relatively no serious injuries on other body parts. In this case there is a trauma mechanism which is the law of physical mechanics. By using the law of forensic physics (Pascal's Law) P = F / A, a pressure of 10.007.1 pa is obtained, while the ability of the adult skull is only able to withstand pressures of less than 1000 pa, with such a large pressure, the skull will be destroyed. Damage to the body part of the victim who fell from a height depends on the height of the place, the speed of fall, and the position when falling. Using another forensic physics formula (Newton's Law), a velocity of 14.14 meters / second is obtained, and a falling time of 1.414 seconds, making it impossible for victims to make changes in body position as self-protection before death. A review of the laws of physical mechanics is needed as an analysis of forensic medicine in determining the mechanism of trauma and the medicolegal aspects of the wound.
Journal of the Indian Academy of Forensic Sciences
Aircraft accident investigation is divided between human and machine factors. Human factors include intoxication, cardiovascular pathology, CO Poisoning, hypoxia, vertigo, operational errors. Machine factors are focused on impact based on speed, direction of travel, angle of impact and altitude. Autopsy data from individual aviation crashes have long been used in aviation safety research. The present study examines the injury pattern in occupants of a light executive jet aircraft crashed in bad monsoon weather, while on a flight, killing all eight persons on board including the two pilots. The bodies of the victims were brought to All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi. All bodies were sufficiently intact and were easily identifiable. Detailed autopsies were performed on all the eight occupants, which yielded findings relevant to the cause of the accident. Our findings emphasize the need for autopsy on all aviation accident victims, especially pilots, as it is the only r...
Forensic science international, 2010
Injury-international Journal of The Care of The Injured, 2009
The purpose of the present study was to identify the main injuries caused by military parachuting jumping techniques in Brazil. With this aim, their distribution by anatomical site and their association with aircraft type and drop zone characteristics were analysed. Data for the study were obtained by the analysis of accident reports, completed after each jumping training mission in which an injury occurred, during the period January 2005–August 2006. The overall lesion rate during the period was 1.2%, with 189 injured subjects, and the highest injury rate was detected for the foot/ankle anatomical site (32.8%). The relative injury rates according to drop zone were 1.00% (main drop zone—Afonsos) and 2.94% for the remaining zones. Regarding aircraft type, these rates were 0.91% for the C130, 2.03% for the C115 and 2.68% for the C95 airplanes. The relative risk for the drop zone categories (reference category Afonsos) was 2.94 (95% CI: [2.10; 4.04]); while for aircraft types (reference category C130) these values were 2.95 (95% CI: [2.18; 3.98]; C95 aircraft) and 2.23 (95% CI: [1.34; 3.70]; C115). The study suggests that ankle stabilisers should be put into use by military parachuters, and that a better-planned schedule should be implemented for the used drop zones.
The Israel Medical Association journal : IMAJ, 2002
As air travel increases and the number of commercial and non-commercial flights rises, so does the number of aircraft accidents. The improved safety standards of the aviation industry result in a growing number of survivors of aircraft crashes, but there are no management guidelines for the treatment of these survivors. To present our experience in treating five survivors of a light aircraft crash that occurred in August 1995 near Jerusalem. All five survivors sustained vertebral column injuries, which was the only injury in most of the survivors. We discuss the mechanism of injury. Investigation of injuries' pattern in survivors of aircraft crash is important for establishing management protocols in trauma centers.
Forensic science international, 2018
The term 'B.A.S.E jump' refers to jumping from a building, antenna, span (i.e., bridge) or earth (i.e., cliff) structure, and parachuting to the ground. There are numerous hazards associated with B.A.S.E jumps which often result in injury and, occasionally, fatality. This case report details the skeletal trauma resulting from a fatal B.A.S.E jump in Australia. In this case, the jumper impacted the ground from a fall of 439m in a feet-first landing position, as a result of a partially deployed parachute, under extreme vertical deceleration. Skeletal trauma was analyzed using full-body post mortem computed tomography (PMCT) and contextual information related to the circumstances of the jump as reported by the Coroner. Trauma to 61 skeletal elements indicates the primary impact was to the feet (i.e., feet-first landing), followed by an anterior impact to the body (i.e., fall forwards). Details of the individual fracture morphologies indicate the various forces and biomechanics ...
Diagnostics, 2022
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY
Forensic Science Medicine and Pathology
A fatal accident is reported in which a small single-engine light airplane crashed. The airplane carried two persons in the front seats, both of whom possessed valid pilot certificates. Both victims were subject to autopsy, including post-mortem computed tomography scanning (PMCT) prior to the autopsy. The autopsies showed massive destruction to the bodies of the two victims but did not identify any signs of acute or chronic medical conditions that could explain loss of control of the airplane. PMCT, histological examination, and forensic chemical analysis also failed to identify an explanation for the crash. A detailed review of an airplane identical to the crashed airplane was performed in collaboration with the Danish Accident Investigation Board and the Danish National Police, National Centre of Forensic Services. The injuries were described using the abbreviated injury scale, the injury severity score, 3-dimensional reconstructions of the PMCT, and an injury pattern analysis. We describe how, on basis of these data, we reached a conclusion about which of the two victims was the most likely to have been in control of the airplane at the time of accident. Furthermore, we argue that all victims of fatal airplane crashes should be subject to forensic autopsy, including PMCT and forensic chemical analysis. The continuous accumulation of knowledge about injury patterns from “simple” accidents is the foundation for the correct analysis of “difficult” accidents.
Occupational Medicine, 1999
This article is a literature review of the aspects of military parachuting related to occupational medicine and focuses on 'conventional' military static line parachuting using a round parachute. The analysis of injuries resulting from military parachuting provide an excellent example of military occupational medicine practice. The techniques of military parachuting are described in order to illustrate the potential mechanisms of injury, and a number of 'classical' parachuting Injuries are described. Rnally some recommendations are made for the recording of parachute injuries which would assist in the international comparison of injury rates and anatomical distribution.
Military medicine, 2000
Altitude injuries, defined as injuries sustained by military static line parachutists before ground impact, have not been reviewed for 50 years. There are indications that these injuries are increasing at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Between May 1, 1994, and April 30, 1996, surveillance was conducted for parachute-related injuries and altitude injuries at Fort Bragg. The incidence of all jump-related injuries was 8.1/1,000 aircraft exits. Significant risk factors for injury included being 30 years of age or older (p < 0.001) and being female (p = 0.003). The overall incidence of altitude injuries was noted to be 0.46/1,000 aircraft exits. Risk factors for altitude injury included being 40 years of age or older (p = 0.005) and in the rank of E-1 to E-3 (p = 0.0001). Fifty-four percent of injuries occurred during exiting before complete parachute deployment, and 46% occurred during the opening shock of the parachute. Mechanisms of injury included static line entanglement (33%), rise...
Loading Preview
Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.