Signs Of Non-accidental Injury
These criteria are intended to help veterinarians to distinguish between accidental injuries and injuries deliberately inflicted on animals. In general, a combination of factors arouse suspicion, as elements of the historical customer behavior, other family members or of the animal and specific types of injuries. Remember that no single element alone does not justify a diagnosis of abuse.
* A history that is inconsistent with the injury, unexplained injury.
o With any trauma, veterinarians should attempt to obtain a detailed history and do not assume that animals are victims of motor vehicle accidents. This photograph shows the wounds inflicted on a cat that could have been caused by a motor vehicle accident. However, the cause of this injury was blunt trauma cat intentional.
* History of conflict (varies depending on who tells it).
* Behavior of the client or patient (eg., The owner seems very worried about injuries, the animal is extremely fearful).
* Fractures – skulls, limb fractures, multiple fractures.
o This radiograph shows fractured vertebrae and multiple fractures of the ribs.
* Multiple fractures in various stages of healing is a decisive sign of non-accidental injury (“syndrome beaten animals”). In the attached slide, the two pictures of the top and bottom left show old healed fractures (evident callus formation), while the bottom photo at right shows recent fractures.
* Bruising – usually the thorax, abdomen, head or neck trauma linear (like a wound inflicted by a stick). Note that, due to the animal’s coat, bruises are more easily detected at autopsy. In live animals, you can shave the areas to be suspicious bruises.
* Injuries to repeat – or old wounds untreated fractures as those mentioned above. The owner can visit many veterinary clinics in order not to arouse suspicion.
* Burns and scalds – cigarette burns, burns the pads of the four legs, burns and caustic chemicals. There may still be an odor associated with the use of an accelerant (oil or chemicals). Scalds were probably on the back or top of the head of the animal.
* Eye injuries – conjunctival or scleral hemorrhages are the most frequently reported.
* Injury thoracic and abdominal contents – to the diaphragm, liver, spleen, kidney or bladder, arising from kicking or punching, but can be serious or fatal and not be recognized because no external signs.
* Administration of drugs or poisons – stupor or signs of strange behavior.
* Drowning is possible that he detects nothing in the autopsy, apart from a wet body, we can find signs of restraint by force during the flooding.
* Asphyxia – crushing of the trachea; edema in the region of the glottis, lips, tongue and eyelids.
* Miscellaneous – p. ex., dislocation of the sacrum near the tail, swinging a cat by its tail, separation of the scapula and the underlying tissues if the animal has been rocked by or forelimbs; injuries inflicted by a knife or a gun.
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Tags: abdomen, Asphyxia, burns and caustic chemicals., burns the pads of the four legs, cigarette burns, diaphragm, head or neck trauma, kidney or bladder, liver, multiple fractures of the ribs, Non-accidental Injury, Signs Of Non-accidental Injury, spleen, suspicious bruises,
Accident Attorneys | Engy McKayla, 17 Dec 10