Abstract
Fournier gangrene is a rare fulminant necrotizing infection of the skin and soft tissue of the perineum that may result in rapid death. We describe the autopsy case of a 70-year-old female with uncontrolled diabetes mellitus who was found unexpectedly dead in her house where she lived with her dog. Examination of the body revelaed a deep necrotic ulceration of the perineum with exposure of the underlying deep muscles that was initially misinterpreted by police officers as post mortem animal predation. Medicolegal examination and histological and microbiological analyses eliminated this hypothesis and the diagnosis of septic multiorgan failure due to necrotizing fasciitis was retained as a cause of death.
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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
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Majdoub, W., Mosbahi, A. & Bonbled, F. Sudden unexpected death due to Fournier gangrene. Forensic Sci Med Pathol 15, 155–158 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12024-018-0030-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12024-018-0030-7