Short Answer Questions (SAQs)
1. Define infanticide and explain its legal status under Indian law.
2. What are the primary causes of infant death?
3. Describe the difference between a stillborn and a dead born fetus.
4. Explain the hydrostatic test and its medicolegal importance.
5. What is Spalding's sign? How is it identified?
6. Describe Ploucquet’s test and its interpretation.
7. How do you differentiate between live birth and dead birth?
8. List signs indicating that a child was born alive.
9. What is the significance of air in the middle ear in infant deaths?
10. Explain the importance of stomach content in determining live birth.
11. Discuss the pathological findings in lungs in live born vs. stillborn.
12. What changes occur in the heart and vessels of a newborn after birth?
13. What is maceration? What does it indicate about time since death?
14. How does putrefaction differ in stillborn versus live born infants?
15. What is the legal punishment for infanticide in India?
16. Describe the signs of violent death in a newborn.
17. How is an autopsy on a newborn different from that on an adult?
18. Discuss the medico-legal importance of vernix caseosa.
19. Mention signs of intrauterine death.
20. Describe medico-legal questions to be answered in suspected infanticide.
21. What are the common mechanical injuries found in infant deaths?
22. How can a pathologist confirm that a child was viable?
23. What are the causes of intrauterine death?
24. Define sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
25. How is SIDS diagnosed postmortem?
26. What are the signs of birth trauma?
27. Describe medico-legal importance of umbilical cord examination.
28. What is meant by a dead born fetus?
29. Discuss the role of histopathology in infant death investigations.
30. What radiological signs help in determining infant age?
31. What are forensic concerns in deaths during assisted delivery?
32. How do signs of suffocation present in infants?
33. Explain the concept of “viability” in the context of infant deaths.
34. What is the role of the placenta in investigating infant deaths?
35. How is infanticide differentiated from abortion and stillbirth?
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
1. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome most commonly occurs in:
A. 0–2 weeks B. 2–4 months C. 6–12 months D. 1–2 years
2. Spalding’s sign is associated with:
A. Prematurity B. Maceration C. Skull bone overriding D. Air in lungs
3. A positive hydrostatic test indicates:
A. Stillbirth B. Live birth C. Maceration D. SIDS
4. Floating lungs in an autopsy suggest:
A. Stillbirth B. Respiration occurred C. Maceration D. Putrefaction
5. Vernix caseosa is an indication of:
A. Intrauterine death B. Viability C. Birth injury D. Malformation
6. Ploucquet's test is based on:
A. Lung volume B. Stomach content C. Umbilical vessels D. Body weight
7. Air in the middle ear suggests:
A. Intrauterine death B. Maceration C. Live birth D. Decomposition
8. Which of these is not a cause of neonatal death?
A. Birth trauma B. Congenital anomaly C. Diarrhea D. Air embolism
9. The cause of death in SIDS is usually:
A. Asphyxia B. Undetermined C. Cardiac arrest D. Infection
10. Most reliable sign of live birth is:
A. Air in stomach B. Floating lungs C. Vernix caseosa D. Cord changes
11. Skull bone overlapping in fetus indicates:
A. Live birth B. Maceration C. Head injury D. None
12. Presence of meconium is usually associated with:
A. Airway obstruction B. Stillbirth C. Putrefaction D. Prematurity
13. Lung weight ratio in live birth is generally:
A. Less than 1:35 B. 1:30–1:35 C. Over 1:35 D. 1:20
14. Which of the following is a feature of maceration?
A. Gas formation B. Mummification C. Skin slippage D. Air embolism
15. Umbilical cord drying is seen after:
A. Death B. Abortion C. Live birth D. Stillbirth
16. A child who never showed signs of life after delivery is:
A. Stillborn B. Live born C. Viable D. Premature
17. Which of the following indicates respiration has occurred?
A. Floating lungs B. Collapsed lungs C. Liver weight D. Empty stomach
18. Which sign is used to assess cranial collapse?
A. Ploucquet’s B. Spalding’s C. Wreden’s D. None
19. Which of the following is a congenital anomaly?
A. Asphyxia B. Hydrocephalus C. Sepsis D. Jaundice
20. What is the most critical aspect of examining infant deaths?
A. Body weight B. Signs of violence C. Vernix D. Gender
21. Which of the following is not a test for live birth?
A. Hydrostatic test
B. Ploucquet’s test
C. Wreden’s test
D. Kastle-Meyer test
22. Which sign indicates skull bone overriding?
A. Casper’s sign
B. Spalding’s sign
C. Hasse’s rule
D. Wreden’s sign
23. Which of the following helps determine fetal maturity?
A. Teeth eruption
B. Crown-rump length
C. Lung weight
D. Meconium
24. Casper’s dictum helps in estimating:
A. Fetal age
B. Time since death
C. Cause of death
D. Manner of death
25. Live birth is confirmed by:
A. Empty stomach
B. Uninflated lungs
C. Air in middle ear
D. Closed fontanelle
26. In SIDS, postmortem findings are usually:
A. Very specific
B. Diagnostic
C. Non-specific or negative
D. Always suggest asphyxia
27. Air embolism as a cause of death is:
A. Common in infants
B. Diagnosed radiologically
C. Diagnosed by autopsy
D. Rare and hard to detect
28. Wreden’s test is used to detect:
A. Air in lungs
B. Air in stomach
C. Air in middle ear
D. Air in heart chambers
29. Sudden infant deaths are most often reported during:
A. Breastfeeding
B. Co-sleeping
C. Vaccination
D. Crying episodes
30. Which sign appears earlier in maceration?
A. Gas bubbles
B. Skin peeling
C. Skull collapse
D. Brain liquefaction
31. Mummification of fetus is seen in:
A. Moist climate
B. Dry, hot conditions
C. Water immersion
D. Air embolism
32. Which of the following is a violent cause of infant death?
A. Aspiration
B. Drowning
C. Birth trauma
D. All of the above
33. Hemorrhage in adrenal glands is common in:
A. Stillbirth
B. Birth trauma
C. SIDS
D. Congenital disease
34. Crown-heel length helps estimate:
A. Gestational age
B. Weight
C. Viability
D. Lung function
35. Which organ is best to determine respiration in neonates?
A. Liver
B. Brain
C. Lungs
D. Stomach
36. Which of the following causes can be missed during routine autopsy?
A. SIDS
B. Sepsis
C. Intracranial hemorrhage
D. Meningitis
37. Placentation abnormalities can cause:
A. Maceration
B. Stillbirth
C. Neonatal seizures
D. Preterm labor
38. Which test uses the weight ratio of lungs to body?
A. Hydrostatic test
B. Ploucquet’s test
C. Wreden’s test
D. Spalding’s sign
39. In live born infants, the stomach often contains:
A. Bile
B. Blood
C. Milk or air
D. Amniotic fluid
40. Putrefaction in fetus begins:
A. Immediately after death
B. Within 12 hours
C. After 24–48 hours
D. After 6–12 hours
41. The most conclusive sign of respiration:
A. Stomach air
B. Ear air
C. Lung floatation
D. Heart size
42. Which sign confirms intrauterine death?
A. Positive lung float
B. Maceration
C. Skull molding
D. Milk in stomach
43. When do ossification centers appear in fetus?
A. 10 weeks
B. 20 weeks
C. 24–28 weeks
D. 32 weeks
44. In stillborn, the umbilical cord is usually:
A. Ligated
B. Uncut and moist
C. Dry and fallen
D. Detached
45. Lividity in infants is most evident:
A. On limbs
B. On chest
C. On face and back
D. Not visible
46. Viability in India is considered beyond:
A. 20 weeks
B. 24 weeks
C. 28 weeks
D. 32 weeks
47. Which of the following is not a form of infanticide?
A. Suffocation
B. Drowning
C. Neonatal resuscitation
D. Head injury
48. Sudden infant death is often linked with:
A. Sleep position
B. Vaccines
C. Air conditioning
D. Cough syrups
49. Hasse’s rule helps estimate:
A. Cause of death
B. Time since death
C. Fetal age
D. Skull deformation
50. A stillbirth is defined legally as death after:
A. 20 weeks gestation
B. 24 weeks gestation
C. 28 weeks gestation
D. Birth
