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Boerhaave syndrome resulting from homicidal blunt trauma
Michelle Xia1, Stephen Pustilnik
1*Department of Pathology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX; and †South Coast Forensics, LLC.
The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology
|June 20, 2014
Abstract:
Boerhaave syndrome is an uncommon condition with high rate of mortality that is higher than 90%. The syndrome has classically been associated with sudden severe chest pain after severe emesis or retching. However, traumatic esophageal rupture secondary to blunt injury has been occasionally reported in the literature, usually from unintentional injury. We report the first case of Boerhaave syndrome resulting from homicidally inflicted blunt trauma to the abdomen, which is a rare finding that can be easily missed during an autopsy.