Gua Sha a traditional Chinese healing technique that could mimick physical abuse: a potential issue with forensic implications. A case study.
Gua Sha (press-stroking) is a traditional Chinese healing technique utilized to combat pain, common cold, heatstroke, and respiratory problems. Patterned ecchymoses may appear due to the action of scraping and scratching repeatedly in a unidirectional manner, with a smooth edge over a lubricated area. They may be very informative, since they, generally, reproduce the shape of the injurious agent. However, many confounding factors can make the identification of the lesions difficult. A case of a 43 year-old Chinese woman, hospitalized for abdominal pain, is reported. An unusual pattern of reddish ecchymoses on the back was present. After a careful investigation, ecchymoses were attributed to Gua Sha. The case demonstrated that clinicians and forensic pathologists should also consider press-stroking, and other similar techniques in adults who present scratch-like marks or ecchymoses on various body districts, even if they have an unusual pattern.
Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Padova, Via Falloppio 50, 35121 Padova, Italy.
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Aprile
Department of Anatomy, University of Malta, Msida, Malta; Institute of Legal Medicine, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, Ospedale Colonnello D'Avanzo, Viale degli Aviatori, 1, 71100 Foggia, Italy.
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Pomara
Institute of Legal Medicine, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, Ospedale Colonnello D'Avanzo, Viale degli Aviatori, 1, 71100 Foggia, Italy. Electronic address: emanuela_turillazzi@inwind.it.
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Turillazzi
D000328:Adult; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004438:Ecchymosis / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D005554:Forensic Medicine; D006801:Humans; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional / Q000379:methods*; D000066550:Physical Abuse; D011693:Purpura / Q000209:etiology*
Chinese traditional healing techniques; Ecchymoses; Gua Sha; Unusual pattern