Experiences with pre- and postmortem imaging in a forensic setting create more and more interest. If autopsy is permitted, forensic pathologists perform careful examination of the neck structures, which plays an important role as this is decisive in the diagnostics of compressive neck injury. Primary tools are important: forensic pathologists and radiologists are supposed to be aware of the complex anatomy of the neck, especially the laryngeal region, to interprete their findings at autopsy and after imaging. It is of great interest whether CT and MR imaging techniques would be useful in comparing findings of autopsy and document findings if autopsy is refused. In the light of this, the embryology, anatomy and a review of imaging techniques of the neck will be highlighted in this article, with special attention to the value of updated imaging techniques of the larynx for forensic purposes in living people and postmortem.

NA Laryngoscope, 1829-1834, 2018.

The relation between human cranial vault thickness (CVT) and various elements of the physical anthropological biological profile is subject of ongoing discussion. Some results seem to indicate no correlation between CVT and the biological profile of the individual, whereas other results suggest that CVT measurements might be useful for identification purposes. This study assesses the correlation between CVT and body weight, stature, age, sex, and ancestry by reviewing data of 1097 forensic autopsies performed at the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI). In subadults (younger than 19 years of age at the time of death), all frontal, temporal, and occipital CVT measurements correlated moderately to strongly with indicators of growth (body weight, stature, and age). Neither sex nor ancestry correlated significantly with cranial thickness. In adults, body weight correlated with all CVT measurements. No meaningful correlation was found between CVT and stature or age. Females showed to have thicker frontal bones, and the occipital region was thicker in the Negroid subsample. All correlation in the adult group was weak, with the distribution of cranial thickness overlapping for a great deal between the groups. Based on these results, it was concluded that CVT generally cannot be used as an indicator for any part of the biological profile.

• The case mix is an important predictor for the concordance between PMCT and autopsy. • In case of an unnatural death, 72--81% of PMCT results matches autopsy results. • In case of a natural death, 0% of PMCT results matches autopsy results. • If no cause of death is identified with autopsy, 98% of PMCT results concurs.

Thorough anatomic knowledge of the hyoid-larynx complex is necessary for forensic radiologists and ear-nose-throat surgeons, given the many anatomic variations that originate in embryology. In forensics the anomalies must be distinguished from fractures because the latter are indicative of violence on the neck. In this manuscript we describe the anatomical variations that can be found in the hyoid-larynx complex and explain their etiology. 284 radiological scans of excised hyoid-larynx complexes were examined with X-ray and CT. Some rare cases from literature and historical collections were added. Two third of the examined hyoid-larynx complexes deviated from the anatomical standard and showed uni- or bilateral ankylosis in the hyoid bone and/or so-called triticeal cartilages. In one fifth of the cases we found striking anatomical variants, mostly derived from the cartilage of the second pharyngeal arch. Anatomical variations of the hyoid-larynx complex can be explained by embryological development. The aberrant hyoid apparatus and the elongated styloid processes (Eagle syndrome) should be considered as one clinical entity with two different expressions as both anomalies are derived from the cartilage of the second pharyngeal arch. Several variants can mimic fractures in this region, so our study is important for radiologists and forensic experts assessing cases of possible violence on the neck.