NCJ Number
146008
Journal
American Journal of Disease of Children Volume: 146 Issue: 6 Dated: (June 1992) Pages: 700-703
Date Published
1992
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This study compared the Wood's Lamp, an ultraviolet light that causes semen to fluoresce, and four forensic laboratory techniques to determine their sensitivity and decline in sensitivity over time in the detection of semen on a child's skin.
Abstract
The detection of semen on the skin of children who present within 72 hours of an episode of sexual assault is critical to medical, forensic, and legal personnel. In comparing methods for semen detection, this study used 11 adult female volunteers. Semen was placed on the skin of the volunteers. Samples of the dried semen were assessed during a 28-hour period with the Wood's Lamp, microscopy, the acid phosphatase assay, and two assays for the prostatic protein p30 (counterimmunoelectrophoresis and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay). The intensity of the Wood's Lamp fluorescence of semen diminished significantly by 28 hours; in contrast, the fluorescence of urine persisted up to 80 hours. Over time, the p30-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique was more sensitive than microscopy, the acid phosphatase assay, and 030- counterimmunoelectophoresis in detecting semen on the skin. The authors conclude that the Wood's Lamp is not a sensitive screening toll and should be used with caution. To improve the detection of sexual abuse in children, the authors recommend that the p30-enzyme- linked immunosorbent assay be used because of its potential as a more sensitive assay than those in current clinical use. 3 figures and 17 references