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Sudden death due to rupture of an aortic syphilitic aneurysm

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Abstract

A 26-year-old man who suddenly collapsed and died was found at autopsy to have a ruptured aortic aneurysm which had the classic “tree bark” appearance of tertiary syphilis. Tracking of blood into the pericardial sac had resulted in sudden death from cardiac tamponade. Serological results were consistent with syphilis and HIV was excluded. Sudden death in a young HIV-negative man from the effects of syphilis is exceedingly rare nowadays.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Forensic Medicine, Sechenov Moscow State Medical University, Moscow, Russia

    Maksim A. Kislov & Konstatin N. Krupin

  2. Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Government Medical College and Hospital, Chandigarh, India

    Mohit Chauhan

  3. Department of General Physiology, Medical Institute of Russian University of People Friendship, Moscow, Russia

    Olga L. Romanova

  4. Research Institute of Human Morphology, Moscow, Russia

    Olga L. Romanova

  5. Forensic Science SA, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia

    Roger W. Byard

  6. Adelaide Medical School, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia

    Roger W. Byard

Authors
  1. Maksim A. Kislov
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  2. Mohit Chauhan
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  3. Konstatin N. Krupin
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  4. Olga L. Romanova
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  5. Roger W. Byard
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Correspondence to Maksim A. Kislov.

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Kislov, M.A., Chauhan, M., Krupin, K.N. et al. Sudden death due to rupture of an aortic syphilitic aneurysm. Forensic Sci Med Pathol 18, 106–109 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12024-021-00419-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12024-021-00419-4

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