TITLE:
Regressive Changes of the Myocardial Sleeves in Elderly Victims of Sudden Bathtub Death
AUTHORS:
Fumiko Satoh, Yoshihisa Seto, Akio Tsuboi, Motoki Osawa
KEYWORDS:
Sudden Bathtub Death, Autopsy, Pulmonary Veins, Myocardial Sleeves, Atrial Fibrillation, Scarring
JOURNAL NAME:
Forensic Medicine and Anatomy Research,
Vol.3 No.2,
April
7,
2015
ABSTRACT: In Japan, most sudden deaths occurring during bathing happen in the winter, and predominantly to elderly people. One can infer a relation to physical conditions that are specific to aging. Atrial fibrillation, an arrhythmia, increases with age. This study examined histological changes in the pulmonary vein myocardial sleeves of sudden bathtub death victims and compared them with those of control individuals. We investigated 35 sudden deaths that occurred during bathing and 34 accidental deaths or deaths caused by diseases unrelated to cardiopathies. Pulmonary veins were excised cross-sectionally from the hilar side to the venoatrial junction. Then they were stained with hematoxylin and eosin, resorcin-fuchsin van Gieson, and Congo-red stains. Amyloid deposits in the pulmonary vein myocardial sleeves, as well as the range and severity of scarring, were graded microscopically on a scale of 0-3. In the sudden bathtub death victims, severe scarring was found in the myocardial sleeves of the four pulmonary veins (mean score, 2.0), which was significantly different (p