Myocardial infarction in a 22 year old male- A case report

Sudden unexpected death is a catastrophic complication of acute myocardial infarction. Every unexpected death has an actual or potential medico-legal significance, and in most countries such deaths come under the purview of a medico-legal investigative system. A forensic expert has the responsibility of establishing the cause of death in these unexpected fatalities. Sudden deaths in adults from presumably natural causes occur more frequently than is commonly thought of. Numerically they constitute a significant fraction of the total mortality in any sizeable community. Here in we report a case of a twenty two year old young male who was apparently healthy suddenly developed chest pain and was declared dead on arrival to the hospital. This created suspicion in the minds of the family members, who insisted on an autopsy. External examination did not reveal any significant findings except for bluish discoloration of nails. Gross examination of the heart revealed near total occlusion of the coronaries and a hyperaemic area over the heart due to congested epicardial capillaries. The heart was subjected for histopathological examination which revealed infarction changes thereby aiding the determination of cause of death.