[Lung fat embolism in a newborn infant?]

Lungs of 20 newborns were investigated microscopically after staining for fat substances. All lungs contained positive particles like small droplets of fat in vessels or aspirated fat in alveoli and fat in cells. Only in two cases of the group of living children were fat globuli observed in blood vessels which resembled morphologically a fat embolism of mild degree. It is discussed if these findings could be interpreted as a real traumatic fat embolism caused by birth injuries, a fat embolism that also is proving that a living child was born.