title: Forensic significance of conduction system abnormalities as a precise cause of accidental death.
abstract: We examined the pathology findings of the cardiac conduction system in 42 human autopsies who were considered to have died an accidental death. Abnormalities in serial sections of the conduction system were found in seven and of these three had an accessory pathway in the conduction system. In one of these there was mild Ebstein's anomaly (ME), two had fibromuscular dysplasia of the atrioventricular node artery with mitral valve prolapse, and two others had abnormal routes showing fragmentation of the bundle of His with ME. A full investigation of the cardiac conduction system can therefore be useful for determining the precise cause in cases of accidental death.
authors.affiliation: Department of Forensic Pathology and Sciences, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, 812-8582, Japan.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nishida
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kudo
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tsuji
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kiyoshima
mesh_terms: D000059:Accidents; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001283:Atrioventricular Node / Q000002:abnormalities; D001344:Autopsy; D002036:Bundle of His / Q000002:abnormalities; D002423:Cause of Death; D005260:Female; D005554:Forensic Medicine; D006329:Heart Conduction System / Q000002:abnormalities*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged