title: Post mortem sampling of the bladder for the identification of victims of fire related deaths.
abstract: In a coronial setting a deceased person must be formally identified. It is difficult to identify a deceased person when their physical features are disrupted and identification by visual means cannot occur. In the absence of visual identification, the confirmation of identity of a deceased person relies on the scientific comparison of information obtained post mortem with ante mortem information. The ante mortem information may include dental and medical records, fingerprints, and DNA profiling. For cases involving incinerated remains, this traditionally requires the collection of blood, muscle or bone samples from the deceased (depending on the severity of the burns) for DNA analysis and subsequent comparison to a reference sample for kinship determination. Following on from work conducted during the DVI response to a plane crash in Papua New Guinea in 2011, a study has been performed examining the viability of utilising material obtained from bladder swabs in deaths associated with fires. Twenty-eight cases were analysed during 2012 with deaths occurring in motor vehicle and aviation accidents, as well as house fires, homicides and from self-immolation. Bladder and conventional (blood, muscle or bone) samples were subjected to DNA analysis and compared. Our findings demonstrate that the bladder samples all gave DNA of sufficient quality for DNA profiling. This easily obtained sample (when available) can be now recommended in the scientific identification process of fire affected deceased persons.
authors: Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, 57-83 Kavanagh Street, Southbank, VIC 3006, Australia.
authors: Rebecca
authors: R
authors: Owen
authors: Paul
authors: P
authors: Bedford
authors: Jodie
authors: J
authors: Leditschke
authors: Andrew
authors: A
authors: Schlenker
authors: Dadna
authors: D
authors: Hartman
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001801:Blood Stains; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000737:chemistry; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004247:DNA / Q000097:blood / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016172:DNA Fingerprinting / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005390:Fires; D049429:Forensic Pathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats; D008875:Middle Aged; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000737:chemistry; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D004247:DNA
keywords: Bladder swab; DNA profiling; DVI; Human identification; Incinerated human remains; Mortuary