Wet Drowning and Secondary Drowning
enter into the respiratory track by partial or complete submersion of the body in
a liquid medium usually water. It is the third leading cause of unintentional
(accidental) injury death.
Drowning is classified as –
Typical Drowning - Complete obstruction of air passages and
lungs by inhalation of water.
Its include –
Wet Drowning – Water is inhaled and enters into the lungs
create obstruction of air, victim suffers severe chest pain.
Fresh water drowning – Large quantity of water entered into the lungs and external
respiration is interfered, the body will absorb the water into the blood. This produces
haemodilution, distorted the PH value of the blood, reduce the electrolytic concentration
resulted in decrease of chloride level in the blood of the left side chamber of the heart.
Heart muscle
suffers hypoxia and ventricular fibrillation occurred.
Salt water drowning - Salt water enters into the lungs and due to its high salinity,
water being drawn from the blood into the lungs resulted in haemoconcentration.
(increase in chloride level and RBC count in blood) slow down the heart rate
until the point of cardiac arrest occurred.
Atypical drowning – No inhalation of water takes place in
the air passage.
Its types are-
Dry drowning - The stimulus to breath is still present when a drowning person
sinks and becomes deeply unconscious. When he try to breathe, water enters into
the pharynx stimulating the reflex that closes the larynx and epiglottis and water
diverted to the stomach. Lack of water found in the lungs at autopsy as laryngeal
spasm does not allow any water in to lungs, death occur due to asphyxia.
Sometimes death occurred due to inhibition of heart before complete submersion of body under the
water.
Partial or shallow water drowning – This is the condition where whole body submersion
not necessary, mouth and nostrils submersion sufficient to cause drowning.
The cases of partial drowning are accidental or homicidal in
nature.
Hydroculation or immersion syndrome –Diving in a very cold water resulted in vagal
inhibition of the heart and sudden death occurred.
Secondary drowning – It’s also known as delayed drowning. When a drowning victim is successfully rescued and he appeared to be fully recovered but could still die. After being rescued victim suffer from pulmonary infection and oedema and died due to asphyxia.
Points of observation and investigation in drowning cases –
1) Drowning is ante mortem or postmortem?
2) What could be the cause of death?
3) Is it suicidal, homicidal or accidental?
4) Possible time of death?
5) When submersion take place?
6) Was dead body thrown after death?
7) When dead body recovered from a river or pond, it has
injuries on eyes, ears, nose, lips, private parts etc. because of eating by
aquatic animals.
8) The rate of decomposition of dead body is slower in
water.
9) Observe the light pink staining on head chest and other parts because of gravitation of blood to these parts when the body is in the water.
10) “Washer women hand” is an important feature of drowning in this the skin of hands and feet shows a bleached and sodden appearance, it’s indicate that the dead body has remained in water for more than 12 hours. After 24 hours these conditions become well mark on skin. When the body remained for a week the cuticle starts to detach from the hands and feet and peeled-off. Wrinkling of skin begins about half an hour and its well formed after an hour.
11) Observed the
sign of asphyxia such as eyes half open, pupils dilated, pale face, protruded tongue.
12) In ante
mortem drowning a white leathery froth if seen in the mouth and nostrils.
13) Contracted
and retracted penis and scrotum normally seen.
14) Inside the
nose and in mouth cavity presence of sand and mud is seen.
15) Presence of
water may be present in the middle ear.
16) Presence of
sand mud weed etc. in the hand are the confirmation sign of drowning death. It indicate
that the deceased tried to grab the soil at the bottom before death.
The investigation
of drowning required the coordination and expertise of multiple agencies such
as law enforcement, medical first responders, medico-legal death investigators,
forensic scientists, and forensic pathologists.
Drowning occurred in natural water settings, pools and hot tubs. For toddlers and Children, even small amounts of water present in bathtubs, toilets and buckets of water or other fluids are risky. They are unable to escape from it after there fall.
MR. DEEPAK PAWAR has been working as Finger Print Expert / Police Officer in Finger Print Bureau , Delhi Police at New Delhi since 2001 . He is the senior most Finger Print Expert , attending / visited several scene of crime and solved many crime cases .He has passed M.Sc (Chemistry) and he is the Member of International Association of Identification . He is the Member of Delhi Police welfare association . He is supervising the Forensic , New Delhi District , Mobile Crime Team . He is one of the Expert in the Special Investigation Team held for investigation of important cases . He has been giving fingerprint proficient training to Delhi Police personnel's . He has been Presented / giving lectures on topics related to forensic science . He is also making examination paper of Finger Print proficient course . He is awarded with Police Medal by MHA and Delhi Police.