[Larynx lesions and sudden death (author's transl)]

Several recently observed cases of "Sudden Death" caused by larynx lesions give reason for a special discussion of this problem. At the Institute of Legal Medicine only six cases were found in 10.747 autopsies between 1949 and 1970. A brief description of the anatomical structure of the larynx is followed by a discussion of the 4 general pathological entities, which might be the etiological cause of laryngeal obstruction: 1. Abnormalities 2. Disturbances of circulation 3. Inflammations 4. Tumors Besides the question of the forensic-medical importance of such fatal cases, the difficulty of evaluating some of the patho-morphologic and histologic findings is discussed. Simultaneously attention is drawn to the frequent lack of a clinical history, so that life-supporting measures wuch as tracheotomy and others are applied very late or not at all. Finally the problem of forensic evaluation of larynx-cysts and their etiology is presented. In this context the clarification of a causal relationship with possible previous intubations of the larynx is of major importance.