[Death at the work site]

In cases of death at work an exact examination of the circumstances of death is necessary in particular with regard to financial consequences for the deceased's relatives or insurances. Autopsy and further-reaching tests like blood alcohol determination or toxicological analysis serve as a basis for such an examination. The practical importance of this problem is indicated by 368 cases of death at work found in the autopsy material of the Munich Department of Legal Medicine in the years 1990-1994 (86 cases of natural death, 24 suicides, 4 homicides, 2 drug intoxications and 252 accidents; fatalities occurring on the way to work were not included). Accidents at building sites, in agriculture or traffic accidents were the most common fatalities leading predominantly to severe head injury as a cause of death. Possible measures of prophylaxis are discussed.