Diagnostic accuracy of post-mortem computed tomography for fractures of the hyoid-larynx complex

Post-mortem computed tomography (PMCT) is routinely used at many forensic institutions to guide the following autopsy and is especially useful for diagnosing fractures. This systematic review aims to investigate the sensitivity and specificity of a PMCT scan in fracture diagnosis of the hyoid-larynx...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of legal medicine 2024-11, Vol.138 (6), p.2357-2371
Main Authors: Hansen, Josephine Ploug, Larsen, Sara Tangmose, Jacobsen, Christina
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Autopsies
Computed tomography
Forensic Medicine
Forensic pathology
Fractures
Larynx
Medical diagnosis
Medical Law
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Neck injuries
Review
Sensitivity
Tomography
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Description
Summary:Post-mortem computed tomography (PMCT) is routinely used at many forensic institutions to guide the following autopsy and is especially useful for diagnosing fractures. This systematic review aims to investigate the sensitivity and specificity of a PMCT scan in fracture diagnosis of the hyoid-larynx complex (HLC) compared to traditional autopsy in cases involving traumatic neck injuries. We searched PubMed, SCOPUS and Web of Science and included papers with cases n  ≥ 3 published between January 2000 and April 2023 reporting on PMCT and autopsy findings of fractures of the HLC. The search provided 259 results of which 10 were included. Overall sensitivity and specificity were 0.70 [0.59; 0.79] and 0.92 [0.80; 0.97] for hyoid bone fractures and 0.80 [0.62; 0.91] and 0.76 [0.63; 0.85] for the thyroid cartilage. The results show great variation, and a large range between studies. These results indicate that PMCT cannot replace autopsy in cases with HLC fractures. Future larger prospective studies are needed, examining fracture details, scan protocols and different slice thicknesses using uniform reporting.
ISSN:0937-9827
1437-1596
1437-1596
DOI:10.1007/s00414-024-03293-1