Fatal Beneath the Glove: A Case Report of Fatal Morel Lavallee Lesion

Road traffic accidents cause 22 deaths daily in India. Lacerations are tears or splits in skin, mucus membranes, muscles, or organs when stretched beyond their limit of elasticity. Open wounds are the second most common wounds in road traffic accidents. Attention is drawn to open wounds due to the surface discontinuity. We are reporting this case because, during the autopsy, it was crucial to examine beneath the seemingly normal skin to determine the cause of death. There was no breach in vascular integrity or bony fractures or tears to narrow down the differentials. Here we discuss a case in which a 26-year-old healthy male died from a closed degloving injury. The autopsy helped in diagnosing a Morel Lavallée lesion. The patient suffered a closed injury to his left lower limb and abdomen after being struck by a heavy motor vehicle. He underwent immediate fasciotomy and exploratory laparoscopy within 10 h of admission but unfortunately did not survive. We review the current literature and the autopsy findings, providing a comparative glimpse of the differentials that can aid in its diagnosis, even in clinical set-ups. Emergency caregivers need to consider this entity as a differential diagnosis even when the skin shows no disintegrity. This will save time in the golden hour and it could potentially save a life.