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First Case of Illegal Euthanasia in Spain: FatalOral Potassium Cyanide Poisoning


Authors: Pampín José M. Blanco 1;  Rivero A. Garcia 2
Authors‘ workplace: Forensic Pathologist, 2Biologist Department of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, Santiago de Compostela, Spain 1
Published in: Soud Lék., , 2004, No. 2, p. 30-33
Category:

Overview

A fatal case of intentional oral cyanide poisoning in a tetraplegic patient whose repeated legalrequests to be allowed to perform euthanasia had been refused, is reported. The postmortemprovided no specific findings and the diagnosis was based on the toxicological analysis of thedifferent samples available. Cyanide was determined in all biological (blood, vitreous humour,bile, urine and viscera) and non-biological samples received (liquid found in a glass beside thebody in the scene of the crime). The high cyanide concentrations in blood (21.5 mg/L) are consistentwith death through cyanide poisoning. Also, the cyanide concentration in the water held inthe glass from which the casualty presumably drank 81900 mg/L), and the high levels of potassiumion found (186 mEq/L), allowed us to conclude that the death was due to the intake of an amountof potassium cyanide between 500 and 1000 mg.

Key words:
forensic toxicology - potassium cyanide - poisoning - suicide

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Labels
Anatomical pathology Forensic medical examiner Toxicology
Topics Journals
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