What are lividity marks?

What are lividity marks?

Lividity is the bluish-purple discoloration of skin after death. It is a sign of livor mortis and occurs when blood pools at the lowest point of the body due to gravity and loss of blood circulation.

What is postmortem staining?

Postmortem lividity or Postmortem staining is a bluish or reddish-purple discoloration due to capillo-venous distension with blood, at the undersurface of the skin of the dependant parts of the body, due to settling of blood in those areas due to pull of the gravity, when circulation to keep the blood in motion ceases.

What are Tardieu spots and what do they indicate when found on a body?

Tardieu spots are petechiae and purpuric hemorrhages that develop in areas of dependency secondary to the rupture of degenerating vessels under the influence of increased pressure from gravity (see the following 2 images).

What are the 4 post mortem stages of death?

There are 4 stages: Pallor Mortis, Algor Mortis, Rigor Mortis and Livor Mortis. Death is one of the most fundamental facts of life. After we die, there are 4 stages of changes that occur in the body. They are used, primarily, to determine the time of death or post mortem index (PMI) in forensic pathology.

When is the time of death?

The physiologic time of death, when the victim’s vital functions actually ceased. The legal time of death, the time recorded on the death certificate. The estimated time of death, the time the medical examiner estimates that death occurred.

What are the last signs of death?

You may notice their:

• Eyes tear or glaze over.
• Pulse and heartbeat are irregular or hard to feel or hear.
• Body temperature drops.
• Skin on their knees, feet, and hands turns a mottled bluish-purple (often in the last 24 hours)
• Breathing is interrupted by gasping and slows until it stops entirely.