Diagnostic accuracy of post-mortem computed tomography for fractures of the hyoid-larynx complex

Josephine Ploug Hansen, Sara Tangmose Larsen*, Christina Jacobsen

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReviewResearchpeer-review

Abstract

Post-mortem computed tomography (PMCT) is routinely used at many forensic institutions to guide the following autopsy and is especially useful for diagnosing fractures. This systematic review aims to investigate the sensitivity and specificity of a PMCT scan in fracture diagnosis of the hyoid-larynx complex (HLC) compared to traditional autopsy in cases involving traumatic neck injuries. We searched PubMed, SCOPUS and Web of Science and included papers with cases n ≥ 3 published between January 2000 and April 2023 reporting on PMCT and autopsy findings of fractures of the HLC. The search provided 259 results of which 10 were included. Overall sensitivity and specificity were 0.70 [0.59; 0.79] and 0.92 [0.80; 0.97] for hyoid bone fractures and 0.80 [0.62; 0.91] and 0.76 [0.63; 0.85] for the thyroid cartilage. The results show great variation, and a large range between studies. These results indicate that PMCT cannot replace autopsy in cases with HLC fractures. Future larger prospective studies are needed, examining fracture details, scan protocols and different slice thicknesses using uniform reporting.

Original languageEnglish
JournalInternational Journal of Legal Medicine
Volume138
Pages (from-to)2357–2371
ISSN0937-9827
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2024.

Keywords

  • Autopsy
  • Fracture detection
  • Hyoid-larynx complex
  • PMCT
  • Review

Cite this