Interpreting perimortem blast trauma from skeletal remains: Complications and considerations
Abstract
Blast trauma results from highly variable events that can lead to similar effects in the skeleton. Clinical literature, which largely focuses on soft tissue, provides limited efficacy for interpreting fully skeletonized cases. Interpretation of skeletal blast trauma is hampered by the low number of fully skeletonized case studies and experimental replication studies, which mainly use nonhuman proxies. The purpose of this study is to discuss fracture patterns on two individuals from WWII as a means to better understand and identify fracture patterns associated with blast trauma. Existing clinical and anthropological criteria are reviewed and applied to two World War II cases, both presumed to exhibit blast trauma based on historical contexts. These case studies exhibit combinations of complicated and extensive signs of blunt‐force and projectile trauma, reflecting the diversity of skeletal trauma resulting from blast‐related events. This analysis emphasizes the arguably impossible task of establishing a diagnosis based on the available literature and lack of prior knowledge about specific losses. Ultimately, analysts must consider the totality of skeletal trauma, combining biomechanical theory and relevant clinical and anthropological literature to arrive at useful yet defensible assessments of trauma. However, refined criteria and additional studies are needed to assess complicated trauma from blast‐related events in anthropological contexts.
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Cited by
Still being checked.
- Authors
- McCormick, K., Palmiotto, A., & Freas, L. E.
- Affiliations
- Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency Laboratory Joint Base Pearl Harbor‐Hickam Hawaii USA
- Indiana University of Pennsylvania (US)
- Corresponding author
- McCormick, Kyle
- ORCID
- Palmiotto, Andrea
- Venue
- Journal of Forensic Sciences
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2023-05-09
- Volume
- 68
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 1359-1371
- ISSN
- 0022-1198 (ISSN-L)
- 1556-4029
- OpenAlex
- W4376105700
- Cited by
- 0
- References
- 30
- FWCI
- 0.00
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Forensic Sciences (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Archeology › Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Autopsy Techniques and Outcomes
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Insect Science › Forensic Entomology and Diptera Studies
- Keywords
- skeletal trauma, fracture patterns, World War II casualties, blunt trauma, trauma diagnosis, forensic osteology
- MeSH terms
- Body Remains, Blast Injuries, Humans, Skeleton, Forensic Anthropology, Fractures, Bone
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