We analyzed the manner and cause of death in 1,193 forensic autopsies from the Jungbu province (central part of South Korea) conducted by the National Forensic Service Daejeon Institute in 2022. Analysis of the manner of deaths revealed that 43.1% (514/1,193 cases) were natural deaths; 42.8% (511/1,193 cases) were unnatural deaths; and 14.1% (168/1,193 cases) were unknown. Among the unnatural deaths, the major manner of death was 44.6% (228/511 cases) by accidents, 34.1% (174/511 cases) by suicide, 13.5% (69/511 cases) undetermined, and 7.8% (40/511 cases) by homicide. Among the unnatural deaths, the major causes of death was 38.4% (196/511 cases) by trauma, 20.4% (104/511 cases) by poisoning, and 17.6% (90/511 cases) by asphyxia. Falling was the major cause of death by trauma (58.7%, 115/196 cases), and strangulation was the major cause of death by asphyxia (75.6%, 68/90 cases). Among the natural deaths, heart disease was the major cause (46.7%, 240/514 cases), followed by endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (14.0%, 72/514 cases). A time-series statistical analysis and comparison of the manner and cause of deaths in this province may facilitate more advanced interpretations relating to both public safety and healthcare in the future.

We analyzed the manner and cause of death in 1,193 forensic autopsies from the Jungbu province (central part of South Korea) conducted by the National Forensic Service Daejeon Institute in 2022. Analysis of the manner of deaths revealed that 43.1% (514/1,193 cases) were natural deaths; 42.8% (511/1,193 cases) were unnatural deaths; and 14.1% (168/1,193 cases) were unknown. Among the unnatural deaths, the major manner of death was 44.6% (228/511 cases) by accidents, 34.1% (174/511 cases) by suicide, 13.5% (69/511 cases) undetermined, and 7.8% (40/511 cases) by homicide. Among the unnatural deaths, the major causes of death was 38.4% (196/511 cases) by trauma, 20.4% (104/511 cases) by poisoning, and 17.6% (90/511 cases) by asphyxia. Falling was the major cause of death by trauma (58.7%, 115/196 cases), and strangulation was the major cause of death by asphyxia (75.6%, 68/90 cases). Among the natural deaths, heart disease was the major cause (46.7%, 240/514 cases), followed by endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (14.0%, 72/514 cases). A time-series statistical analysis and comparison of the manner and cause of deaths in this province may facilitate more advanced interpretations relating to both public safety and healthcare in the future.

We analyzed the manner and cause of death in 1,193 forensic autopsies from the Jungbu province (central part of South Korea) conducted by the National Forensic Service Daejeon Institute in 2022. Analysis of the manner of deaths revealed that 43.1% (514/1,193 cases) were natural deaths; 42.8% (511/1,193 cases) were unnatural deaths; and 14.1% (168/1,193 cases) were unknown. Among the unnatural deaths, the major manner of death was 44.6% (228/511 cases) by accidents, 34.1% (174/511 cases) by suicide, 13.5% (69/511 cases) undetermined, and 7.8% (40/511 cases) by homicide. Among the unnatural deaths, the major causes of death was 38.4% (196/511 cases) by trauma, 20.4% (104/511 cases) by poisoning, and 17.6% (90/511 cases) by asphyxia. Falling was the major cause of death by trauma (58.7%, 115/196 cases), and strangulation was the major cause of death by asphyxia (75.6%, 68/90 cases). Among the natural deaths, heart disease was the major cause (46.7%, 240/514 cases), followed by endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (14.0%, 72/514 cases). A time-series statistical analysis and comparison of the manner and cause of deaths in this province may facilitate more advanced interpretations relating to both public safety and healthcare in the future.

We analyzed the manner and cause of death in 1,193 forensic autopsies from the Jungbu province (central part of South Korea) conducted by the National Forensic Service Daejeon Institute in 2022. Analysis of the manner of deaths revealed that 43.1% (514/1,193 cases) were natural deaths; 42.8% (511/1,193 cases) were unnatural deaths; and 14.1% (168/1,193 cases) were unknown. Among the unnatural deaths, the major manner of death was 44.6% (228/511 cases) by accidents, 34.1% (174/511 cases) by suicide, 13.5% (69/511 cases) undetermined, and 7.8% (40/511 cases) by homicide. Among the unnatural deaths, the major causes of death was 38.4% (196/511 cases) by trauma, 20.4% (104/511 cases) by poisoning, and 17.6% (90/511 cases) by asphyxia. Falling was the major cause of death by trauma (58.7%, 115/196 cases), and strangulation was the major cause of death by asphyxia (75.6%, 68/90 cases). Among the natural deaths, heart disease was the major cause (46.7%, 240/514 cases), followed by endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (14.0%, 72/514 cases). A time-series statistical analysis and comparison of the manner and cause of deaths in this province may facilitate more advanced interpretations relating to both public safety and healthcare in the future.

Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD), also known as non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis, is a multi-systemic disease with unclear pathogenesis. Based on a small number of case studies, pegylated interferon-α (PEG-IFN-α) has been used as the front-line treatment option. However, there are limited data regarding administration of ropegylated-interferon α-2b (ROPEG-IFN-α 2b) for ECD patients. Herein, we report two cases of severe ECD treated with two types of PEG-IFN-α. One patient with heart and skeleton involvement and BRAF V600E mutation was treated with weekly PEG-IFN-α 2a. Another patient with bone involvement and no BRAF V600E mutation was administered monthly ROPEG-IFN-α 2b. The two types of PEG-IFN-α showed excellent disease control, excellent survival outcomes, and manageable toxicities in ECD patients. These results suggest that ROPEG-IFN-α 2b could be used equivalently to PEG-IFN-α 2a for management of advanced ECD.

The number of migrant workers is increasing worldwide every year, and their number and role in Korean society is also increasing. However, the poor conditions faced by migrant workers often become a social issue, and it is not uncommon for them to be the subject of forensic autopsies. This study aimed to investigate the current status of medicolegal autopsy on migrant workers in Korea. We collected data of medicolegal autopsies on migrant workers conducted in Korea from 2016 to 2020 by requesting data from the institutions performing medicolegal autopsy. We calculated the autopsy rate and analyzed manner of death and cause of death. The medicolegal autopsy rate for foreign deaths was 16.4%, which was more than five times higher than the autopsy rate for Korean deaths. By manner of death, 43.7% were natural death, 6.4% were homicides, 8.5% were suicides, 23.6% were accidental deaths, 2.7% were undetermined unnatural deaths and 15.0% were unknown. These results showed a high rate of homicide, accidental death, and unknown death compared to Korean. And the proportion of industrial accident deaths and sudden manhood death syndrome were high. Through this study, it was confirmed that medicolegal autopsies are performed at a relatively high frequency when migrant workers die, and the characteristics related to the deaths of migrant workers were identified.

Sudden death during or after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) could be led to potential medicolegal disputes. This study aimed to investigate the clinical and postmortem findings in PCI-related deaths-focusing on the current statusto inform preventive strategies against these fatalities. Forty-three cases were retrieved from the National Forensic Service's postmortem records between 2015 and 2021, and the corresponding postmortem findings and clinical information were analyzed. The analyses revealed a relatively consistent annual incidence of PCI-related deaths. Immediate deaths during or shortly after PCI occurred in 17 cases (39.5%), and delayed PCI-related deaths after discharge from the hospital occurred in 26 cases (60.5%). The causes of PCI-related deaths in the postmortem cases were categorized into four groups: PCI complications (11 cases, 26%), acute myocardial infarction (23 cases, 53%), ischemic heart disease (8 cases, 19%), and others (1 case, 2%). Postmortem examinations played a critical role in determining the cause of death and obtaining medical evidence, including pathological findings of the heart as well as those of coronary artery and stent insertion. Our findings suggest that a detailed examination of the heart, coronary arteries, stent status, and atherosclerosis in PCI-related deaths could help provide more accurate information as medical evidence and prevent/resolve potential medicolegal issues. Further, this could advance our understanding of PCI-related deaths and inform future preventive strategies.

We analyzed 1,079 forensic autopsies conducted in 2021 by the National Forensic Service Daejeon Institute from the Jungbu province in the central part of South Korea, for their manner and cause of death. Among the manner of death (n=1,079), 45.3% (n=489) were categorised as unnatural, 39.5% (n=426) as natural, and 15.2% (n=164) were unknown. Among the unnatural deaths (n=489), 40.7% (n=199) were accidents, 36.8% (n=180) were suicides, 14.1% (n=69) were undetermined, and 8.4% (n=41) were homicides. The major causes of unnatural deaths (n=489) were by trauma, causing 34.4% (n=168), poisoning causing 26.8% (n=131), and asphyxia causing 17.2% (n=84). The major cause of death by trauma (n=168) was falling at 46.4% (n=78), and by asphyxia (n=84) was strangulation at 76.2% (n=64). Among natural deaths (n=426), heart disease was the major cause at 49.8% (n=212) followed by vascular disease at 16.7% (n=71). In future, a time-series statistical analysis on the manner and causes of death in Jungbu province may provide insight and allow for more advanced interpretations about both healthcare and public safety.

Rabbits are being increasingly used as companion animals, and in research; thus, the need for proper veterinary care for rabbits has increased. Surgical access is more challenging in rabbits under inhalation anesthesia compared to other animals, such as dogs and cats. Rabbits have a very narrow and deep oral cavity, large incisors, and a large tongue. Moreover, their temporomandibular joint has limited mobility, making it more difficult to approach the larynx. Various methods have been proposed to overcome this difficulty. The video laryngoscope was introduced in 1999 and is useful when airway intubation is unsuccessful using a conventional laryngoscope. We postulated that a video laryngoscope with a modified size 1 Macintosh blade (McGrath MAC Video Laryngoscope, Medtronic, USA) would facilitate the intubation of New Zealand White rabbits. Sixteen specific-pathogen-free male New Zealand White rabbits weighing 3.45–4.70 kg were studied. All rabbits were intubated using the video laryngoscope. Typically, a 3.0 mm endotracheal tube was used for rabbits weighing < 4 kg, while a 3.5 mm tube was used in those weighing > 4 kg. During surgery, anesthesia was well maintained, and there were no major abnormalities in the animals’ conditions. No rabbit developed breathing difficulties or anorexia after recovering from anesthesia. We established an intubation method using a video laryngoscope with a modified blade and stylet in the supine (ventrodorsal) position and successfully applied it in 16 rabbits. It is useful for training novices and for treating rabbits in veterinary hospitals with few staff members and animal research facilities where there are insufficient human resources.