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Scientific article
Case report
English

Cardioinhibitory reflex due to a karate kick: a case report

Contributors

de Froidmont, Sébastien; Lobrinus, Johannes Alexander; Michaud, Katarzyna; Palmiere, Cristian; Augsburger, Marc-Pierre; Mangin, Patrice; Grabherr, Silke

Published in

The American journal of forensic medicine and pathology, vol. 36, no. 2, p. 79-83

Publication date

2015

Abstract

This article describes the case of a 17-year-old adolescent boy who received a foot kick in the trunk area from an expert in karate. He presented with immediate cardiocirculatory arrest. After a prolonged resuscitation, he was transferred to a hospital where he died 5 days later without ever regaining consciousness. Postmortem investigations including autopsy, radiology, histology, toxicology, and postmortem chemistry were performed that showed signs of multiple organ failure, an acute hemorrhage in the region of the celiac plexus, and signs of medical resuscitation. No preexisting disease, particularly those concerning the heart, was objectified. The cause of death was attributed to multiple organ failure after a prolonged cardiocirculatory arrest. Concerning the origin of the cardiac arrest, 2 hypotheses were considered-a cardioinhibitory reflex and a cardiac contusion (commotio cordis). Because of the presence of traumatic lesions in the celiac plexus, the first hypothesis was finally submitted. This case is reported because rare cases of sudden death from celiac reflex are described in the literature where it is almost impossible to find references with accurate documentation. The presented case confirms the importance of detailed documentation of the circumstances and postmortem investigations to establish a diagnosis of death due to cardioinhibitory reflex.

UNIGE affiliation entities

UNIGE research groups

Citation (ISO format)

DE FROIDMONT, Sébastien et al. Cardioinhibitory reflex due to a karate kick: a case report. In: The American journal of forensic medicine and pathology, 2015, vol. 36, n° 2, p. 79–83. doi: 10.1097/PAF.0000000000000150

Main files (1)

Article (Published version)

Identifiers

Journal ISSN

0195-7910
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Technical informations

Creation

31/07/2015 11:59:00

First validation

31/07/2015 11:59:00

Update

14/03/2023 23:34:23

Status update

14/03/2023 23:34:23

Last indexation

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