DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2020.v08i02.025

Pages: 481-485

This present study was performed on cases of asphyxial death due to external compression of neck due to hanging and strangulation brought for medicolegal autopsy at mortuary of SRN Hospital, MLN Medical College, Allahabad, and Uttar Pradesh, India. The neck dissection was done as per technique devised by Prinsloo and Gordon [1]. Taking into consideration the importance given to hyoid bone fracture in hanging, strangulation cases by many authors fracture of hyoid bone had been studiedmeticulously Of the total 3322 medicolegal autopsies done at mortuary of S.R.N.Hospital, Allahabad during the period starting July 2011 to June 2012, 82 cases deaths were as a result of external compression of neck, amounting to an incidence of 2.4%. Of all asphyxial deaths hanging accounted for 84.1% of cases while strangulation accounting for 15.8% of cases with ligature strangulation being 30.7% and throttling being 69.2%. Males accounted for maximum number of hanging as well as strangulation cases.hanging was common in 21-30 age group while strangulation was common in 11-20 age group. None of the hanging cases showed hyoid bone fracture while all cases of throttling showed fractured hyoid. Medicolegal autopsy, Asphyxial death, hanging, strangulation.