Death due to knee-elbow position in a restricted area: positional - traumatic asphyxia? case report

Abstract

Positional asphyxia which evolves out of a body’s staying in an unusual posture, is a kind of hypoxia and anoxia that occurs as a result of -partially or completely- narrowing of respiratory passage. Crime scene investigation provides significant evidences and clues to enlighten on positional asphyxial deaths. This study aims to discuss the cause of death for the case which was found stuck in knee-elbow position in a restricted area due to external factor exposure. The victim was a 37-year-old male worker. It was thought that he had left on the slaughter house at the end of the shift in the evening but he was found in the following morning as restricted in a cattle knocking box. In the examination of the case, there was no traumatic or pathologic findings to explain the cause of death, except for the apparent finding of asphyxia. It was considered that the death in the case occurred due to positional asphyxia caused by external factor exposure related to restriction in knee-elbow position. As a conclusion, in order to elucidate the death reason and the manner of death, in addition to the findings of internal and external medical examination, evaluation of crime scene investigation and history are also important.