NCJ Number
231659
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 55 Issue: 4 Dated: July 2010 Pages: 1120-1122
Date Published
July 2010
Length
3 pages
Annotation
In this work, the authors describe two cases of accidental perineal-vaginal injury in children.
Abstract
A large number of conditions have been mistaken for abuse. Differentiating accidental injuries from inflicted injuries is important in the management of injured children. In case 1, a 4-year-old girl suffered a vaginal tear caused by violent stretching during play; in case 2, a 3-year-old girl had minor lacerations of labia minora and majora. The intervention of a multi-specialist team including a forensic pathologist and forensic psychiatrist was the key factor in being able to exclude abuse by third parties in the described cases. This leads to the appropriate recommendations to be adopted in the forensic medicine setting. (Published Abstract)