title: A Rare Case of an Intact Bone Plug Associated with a Gunshot Exit Wound.
abstract: This case study presents an unusual manifestation of gunshot trauma in skeletal tissue from a post-World War II human rights abuse sample uncovered in Vilnius, Lithuania. After briefly reviewing the typical wound appearance of projectile trauma in the cranium, we discuss the presence of an intact bone plug associated with a gunshot exit wound in an individual from the Tuskulenai Case. While this individual demonstrated typical gunshot entry and exit wounds to the cranium consistent with high-velocity trauma, the bone plug indicates that the projectile likely lost much of its kinetic energy while traveling through the cranium resulting in a low-velocity impact at the exit site. This study reviews a similar instance of a bone plug recovered from a bioarcheological sample in Peru and emphasizes the importance of thorough archeological excavations of mass graves.
authors.affiliation: Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, 1885 Old Spanish Trail, Houston, TX, 77054.
authors.forename: Cate E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Bird
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, 655 Auditorium Dr., Room 355, East Lansing, MI, 48824.
authors.forename: Julie M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Fleischman
mesh_terms: D018732:Forensic Anthropology; D044709:Forensic Ballistics; D020197:Head Injuries, Penetrating / Q000473:pathology*; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D007700:Kinetics; D008097:Lithuania; D008297:Male; D063906:Prisoners of War / Q000266:history; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000473:pathology*
keywords: bone plug; exit wound; forensic anthropology; forensic archeology; forensic science; mass graves; projectile trauma