%0 Journal Article %T Suicidal nitrogen inhalation by use of scuba full-face diving mask %J Journal of forensic sciences %D 2013 %A Straka, Lubomir %A Novomesky, Frantisek %A Gavel, Anton %A Mlynar, Juraj %A Hejna, Petr %V 58 %N 5 %P 1384-1387 %X A 29-year-old man was found dead lying on the bed in a hotel room in a famous Slovak mountain resort. He had a full-face diving mask on his face, connected through a diving breath regulator to a valve of an industrial (nondiving) high-pressure tank containing pure 100% nitrogen. The breath regulator (open-circuit type) used allowed inhalation of nitrogen without addition of open air, and the full-face diving mask assured aspiration of the gas even during the time of unconsciousness. At autopsy, we found the typical signs of suffocation. Toxicological analysis revealed 94.7% content of nitrogen in alveolar air. Following the completion of the police investigation, the manner of death was classified as a suicide. Within the medico-legal literature, there has been only one similar case of suicidal nitrogen inhalation described (1).

Language: en

%G en %I John Wiley and Sons %@ 0022-1198 %U http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.12239