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Updated: May 12, 2026

A Novel Approach for the Administration of Medications and Fluids in Emergency Scenarios and Settings
Published on: November 9, 2016
[Death in a rainwater tank--unusual death by hypothermia]
Elke Doberentz1, Burkhard Madea
1Institut für Rechtsmedizin der Universität Bonn.
Abstract:
Death due to hypothermia is often accidental and associated with alcohol intoxication, diseases or previous trauma. A very rare phenomenon is suicidal hypothermia. A 74-year-old depressive woman was found dead in a rain barrel with her head above the water level in February at an outdoor temperature of 0 degrees C. Forensic autopsy did not reveal any findings typical of drowning. Likewise, there was no morphological evidence of hypothermia, but this cannot be expected in immersion hypothermia with a very short agony. Unusual situations at scene always require comprehensive police investigations and medicolegal examinations.
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