Sudden, unexpected death due to undiagnosed frontal glioblastoma in a schizophrenic patient

The incidence of sudden death due to undiagnosed primary intracranial tumor is low in forensic autopsy. We report a case of a 48-year-old white male, known to be a schizophrenic patient for several years, and in whom a medico-legal autopsy disclosed a large, previously undiagnosed, bilateral frontal...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Forensic science international 2006-05, Vol.158 (2), p.200-203
Main Authors: Shiferaw, K., Pizzolato, G.P., Perret, G., Harpe, R. La
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analysis
Autopsy
Biological and medical sciences
Brain Neoplasms - complications
Brain Neoplasms - diagnosis
Causes of
Corpus Callosum - pathology
Death, Sudden - etiology
Diagnosis
Forensic medicine
Forensic Pathology
Forensic sciences
Frontal Lobe - pathology
General aspects
Glioblastoma
Glioblastoma - complications
Glioblastoma - diagnosis
Glioblastoma multiforme
Humans
Intracranial tumors
Investigative techniques, diagnostic techniques (general aspects)
Male
Malignancy
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Public health. Hygiene
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
Schizophrenia
Sudden death
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Summary:The incidence of sudden death due to undiagnosed primary intracranial tumor is low in forensic autopsy. We report a case of a 48-year-old white male, known to be a schizophrenic patient for several years, and in whom a medico-legal autopsy disclosed a large, previously undiagnosed, bilateral frontal glioblastoma infiltrating the genu of corpus callosum. We emphasize the importance of performing complete autopsy, including a thorough neuropathological examination, in all cases of sudden unexpected death, especially in those cases in which no extracerebral cause of death had been established and whose clinical history was primarily of a psychiatric nature.
ISSN:0379-0738
1872-6283
DOI:10.1016/j.forsciint.2005.08.006