title: Apparent elevated blood alcohol due to laboratory artefact: A potential cause of misinterpretation.
abstract: Of all the drugs of forensic interest, none are more common or pervasive than alcohol. A thorough understanding of all aspects of alcohol pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics is essential for any clinical forensic practitioner. In rare cases interpretation of blood alcohol results may require questions to be asked about laboratory analysis. We present a case where an apparently positive blood alcohol result could have resulted in an unnecessary avenue of coronial investigation of a child death.
authors: Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, Australia. Electronic address: morris.odell@vifm.org.
authors: Morris S
authors: MS
authors: Odell
authors: Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, Australia.
authors: Gregory R
authors: GR
authors: Young
mesh_terms: D000140:Acidosis, Lactic / Q000150:complications*; D016477:Artifacts; D000067401:Blood Alcohol Content; D057075:Enzyme Assays; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D005260:Female; D005554:Forensic Medicine; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007755:Laboratories, Hospital; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000150:complications
chemical_list: D000067401:Blood Alcohol Content
keywords: Alcohol; Artefact; Infant; Interference from lactic acid when using an enzymatic blood alcohol method