POSTMORTEN CHEMISTRIES ON BLOOD WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO UREA NITROGEN, ELECTROLYTES, AND BILIRUBIN

• NCJ Number: 12748
• Journal: Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 19 Issue: 1 Dated: (JANUARY 1974) Pages: 33-42
• Author(s): J I COE
• Date Published: 1974
• Length: 10 pages
• Corporate Author: American Soc for Testing and Materials
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

POSTMORTEM SERUM EVALUATIONS OF SODIUM, POTASSIUM, CHLORIDE, CARBON DIOXIDE CONTENT, TOTAL PROTEIN AND ALBUMIN, UREA NITROGEN, GLUCOSE, AND CALCIUM.

Abstract

IT WAS FOUND THAT UREA NITROGEN LEVELS ACCURATELY REFLECT TERMINAL ANTEMORTEM NITROGEN RETENTION. POSTMORTEM SERUM BILIRUBIN IS AN ACCURATE MEASURE OF ANTEMORTEM JAUNDICE, BUT SLIGHT POSTMORTEM INCREASES OF TOTAL BILIRUBIN WITH INCREASE IN POSTMORTEM TIME CAUSE DIFFICULTY IN INTERPRETING BORDERLINE ABNORMAL BILIRUBIN VALUES IN THE NON-JAUNDICED INDIVIDUAL. THE PRESENT STUDY DEMONSTRATES THAT SERUM SODIUM BEGINS TO FALL IMMEDIATELY AFTER DEATH AND THAT THE RATE OF FALL ON THE AVERAGE IS SIMILAR TO THE DECREASE IN CHLORIDE ION. THE INVESTIGATION ALSO ESTABLISHES THAT THE PRESENT PROCEDURE USED IN THE AUTOANALYZER IS UNSATISFACTORY FOR POSTMORTEM CALCIUM DETERMINATION. THIS IS THOUGHT TO BE THE RESULT OF INTERFERENCE FROM MAGNESIUM. POSTMORTEM EVALUATION OF SERUM PROTEIN IS FOUND TO BE RELIABLE WITH EXCELLENT CORRELATION BY ALL PRESENT TECHNIQUES BETWEEN ANTEMORTEM AND POSTMORTEM SPECIMENS. FINALLY, THE PREVIOUSLY REPORTED POSTMORTEM RISE IN BOTH ALKALINE PHOSPHATASE AND GLUTAMIC OXALIC TRANSAMINASE HAS BEEN SUBSTANTIATED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT)