It is challenging in forensic pathology to determine whether an injury is formed antemortem or postmortem in putrefied tissues. Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining fails to work in highly decomposed corpses. Ponceau/Victoria blue B (P/VB) staining is usually used to show collagen fibers and muscles. Here, we used P/VB to show antemortem laceration injury on the scalp in a severely decomposed cadaver 1.5 years after death. This method is a simple and alternative method for the diagnosis of antemortem injury.
Keywords: Antemortem injury; Forensic pathology; Ponceau/Victoria blue B staining; Putrefaction.
© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.