title: Air gun injury with deadly aftermath--case report.
abstract: In Republic of Macedonia the use of air guns is quite widespread. They are used mainly for target practice. They are regulated by the Law of Arms, where they are defined as pneumatic weapons. There is no legal limit on type or quantity of ammunition that one may possess. Our Institute performs at least 90% of the forensic autopsies in Macedonia. In this report we describe the only fatality by pneumatic weapon to come to our attention over the past 10 years. A 6-year-old girl was accidentally wounded by her brother when he and his father were trying a new air gun, a 4.5mm single shot, break barrel, spring piston air rifle manufactured in China under the brand "Westlake". She died within minutes. Autopsy showed cardiac tamponade due to penetration of the aorta. A 0.5g metal projectile, 4.5mm in diameter, with a pointed, conical shape, was recovered from the pericardial sac.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Forensic Medicine, Criminalistic and Medical Deontology, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University, School of Medicine, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia. astankov@medf.ukim.edu.mk
authors.forename: Aleksandar
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stankov
authors.forename: Zlatko
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Jakovski
authors.forename: Goran
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pavlovski
authors.forename: Nedzat
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Muric
authors.forename: Andrew J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Dwork
authors.forename: Zdravko
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Cakar
mesh_terms: D001344:Autopsy; D002305:Cardiac Tamponade / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D002648:Child; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D005389:Firearms / Q000145:classification / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D049429:Forensic Pathology / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D018843:Republic of North Macedonia; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000150:complications*