Forensic Medicine Revision – Core Vocabulary

Abrasion

Superficial injury involving loss of partial epidermis; heals without scar or significant bleeding.

Scratch Abrasion

Linear abrasion produced by pointed objects (pin, fingernail, thorn).

Grazed/Sliding Abrasion

Broad abrasion from tangential friction against rough surface; common in road-traffic accidents.

Pressure Abrasion

Abrasion caused by prolonged compression (e.g., ligature mark).

Imprint/Impact Abrasion

Momentary impact leaves patterned abrasion matching weapon surface (e.g., whip mark).

Patterned Abrasion

Abrasion displaying exact pattern of causative object; may be pressure or imprint type.

Epithelial Tag

Rolled heap of scraped epithelium at tail of abrasion indicating direction of force.

Aging of Abrasion – Raw

Aging of Abrasion – Reddish

12 h: scab turns reddish.

Aging of Abrasion – Reddish-Brown

2–3 days old abrasion scab.

Aging of Abrasion – Brown

4–5 days old abrasion scab.

Aging of Abrasion – Black

6–7 days old abrasion scab.

Contusion (Bruise)

Extravasation of blood within tissues due to blunt force; ill-defined margins.

Intradermal Bruise

Superficial bruise confined to dermis.

Deep (Come-Out) Bruise

Bruise appearing after delay when blood from deep tissue reaches surface.

Ectopic Bruise

Bruise away from impact site due to tracking of blood (e.g., Battle sign).

Patterned Bruise

Bruise reflecting shape of striking object (e.g., tramline bruise).

Six-Penny Bruise

Coin-shaped fingertip bruise seen in throttling or child abuse.

Butterfly Bruise

Bruise caused by pinching during child abuse.

Tramline/Railway Bruise

Parallel bruises with central pale zone from rod or stick impact.

True vs Artificial Bruise

True – due to trauma, shows color changes; Artificial – due to irritant plant juice, vesication and itching present.

Laceration

Tear of tissue by blunt force; irregular margins, tissue bridges, limited bleeding.

Incised Wound

Clean-cut wound by sharp edge, no tissue bridges, profuse bleeding.

Split Laceration

Incised-looking laceration produced when skin crushed against bone prominence.

Avulsion/Flaying

Tangential shearing removes skin from deeper tissues (degloving, scalping).

Hesitation Cuts

Multiple superficial parallel cuts on accessible sites, indicating tentative suicidal attempt.

Langer’s Lines

Skin cleavage lines along collagen; cut perpendicular gives gaping.

Stab Wound

Wound with greatest depth dimension produced by pointed weapon.

Hilt Mark

Abrasion/contusion from guard of knife in complete penetration; shows direction & weapon type.

Bevelling in Stab

Undermining of entry edge when blade enters obliquely; suggests homicide.

Fissure Fracture

Linear crack in skull vault from broad surface impact; most common skull fracture.

Depressed Fracture

Inw ard displacement of skull fragment by small striking surface (hammer); signature fracture.

Pond Fracture

Indented elastic depression in infant skull (ping-pong).

Gutter Fracture

Groove in skull by oblique bullet.

Comminuted Fracture

Skull broken into multiple fragments by repeated blows.

Diastatic Fracture

Fracture line runs along skull sutures; seen in young adults.

Ring Fracture

Circular base fracture around foramen magnum from fall on feet or heavy head load.

Hinge Fracture

Transverse base fracture dividing skull into halves (motor-cyclist fracture).

Puppe’s Rule

Secondary fracture lines stop at prior fractures, useful to sequence blows.

Coup Injury

Brain contusion directly beneath impact site.

Contrecoup Injury

Brain