Importance of the forensic autopsy in the diagnosis of septic shock: a case report
Sibón-Olano, A.; Sánchez-Rodríguez, E.; Payá, M.; Barrera-Pérez, E.; Salguero-Villadiego, M.; Fernández-Rodríguez, A.
Revista Espanola de Quimioterapia Publicacion Oficial de la Sociedad Espanola de Quimioterapia 30(5): 368-371
2017
ISSN/ISBN: 0214-3429 PMID: 28841792 Document Number: 692342
Septic shock sometimes starts with unspecific symptoms that hamper the clinical diagnosis and, therefore an appropriate treatment. When the septic shock follows a fulminating course with a fatal outcome, the etiological diagnosis has to be conducted post-mortem. Sudden unexpected deaths in children and young adults are frequently the object of medico-legal autopsies. Some sudden unexpected deaths have an infectious origin, which requires further analyses, including microbiology, to establish the cause of death. Here, the case of a fatal septic shock in a 19-month old male infant is presented. After a mild foot injury, an infection by Streptococcus pyogenes progressed to septic shock with a fatal outcome as post-mortem studies demonstrated.