Strangulation Asphyxia

Abstract

Strangulation asphyxia (SA) is one of the types of acute airway obstruction that occurs during direct compression of the trachea, blood vessels and nerve trunks of the neck. Characteristic of this type of asphyxia are rapidly growing hypoxemia and hypercapnia, deep disturbances of cerebral circulation by hemorrhagic type, hypoxic/anoxic encephalopathy. There are three main categories compression of the neck: hanging, ligature strangulation, suffocation by hands. The difference between these three concepts is explained by the cause of the external compression of the neckeither a tightening strip tensed by the gravitational weight of the body, or by part of the body; tightening strip provided by a force other than body weight (ligature strangulation); or external pressure by the arms, forearms, or other limbs (suffocation by the hands). "Hanging in falling from height (with a jerk)" is not a typical form of strangulation asphyxia and is not a suffocation subtype. The main clinical signs of strangulation in dependence to its duration: in the overwhelming majority of victims who were brought to the hospital alive, the level of consciousness by the Glasgow scale was defined as <8. In most of the surviving patients this indicator was more than 3 points. Obstruction of venous outflow from the brain leads to congestive hypoxia and loss of consciousness in just 15 seconds. Complications of strangulation asphyxia: post-hypoxic/post-anoxic encephalopathy; cases of temporary vision loss are known, in a number of cases-"tympanic membrane syndrome"; chondroperichondritis; damage to the cervical spinal cord is accompanied by appropriate neurological symptoms in the form of