Chest X-Ray in the Diagnosis of Mine-Explosion Injury During Mass Examination of the Dead

Due to the increasing number of deaths from mine-explosive chest injuries, the problem of diagnosing these injuries during the mass arrival of dead bodies has become urgent for forensic medicine. One of the possible solutions to this problem is an express X–ray diagnosis of mine and explosive damage to the chest organs during a mass examination of the dead. The purpose of the study: To study the possibilities of express X-ray diagnostics of mine-explosive wounds of the chest using a portable X-ray machine. Material and methods: Express chest X-ray was performed in 50 victims of the SMO. The entire study was conducted in atypical styling, “with your hands.” Results: 69 X-ray images were taken. Data were obtained that 66 % of the victims had damage to the bone structure of the chest, in other cases damage to internal organs and soft tissues was detected. In 10 % of cases, damage was caused by small fragments, in 14 % by large fragments, and in 32 % the damage was caused by fragments of various sizes. In 40 % of cases, combined lesions of the chest, skull, neck, abdominal cavity and upper extremities were found on radiographs. The peculiarity of the wounding projectile was clarified and the possibilities of determining the wound channel with visualization of the inlet and outlet openings were studied. X-ray analysis showed that the vast majority of chest injuries were accompanied by rib fractures and soft tissue injuries. Conclusions: Hand-held photography with a portable X-ray machine in atypical layouts did not create dynamic blurring. The use of a portable device made it possible to diagnose the length and shape of wound channels, allowing for a clear definition of the inlet and outlet openings, the contours of the channel and its direction, as well as minor injuring agents. Express X–ray diagnostics visualizes wounding projectiles well, regardless of what the foreign body is – a bullet or its fragments, a striking element, a fragment of a drone, a fragment of a projectile or a bone.