Determining the Time and Cause of Death
The Post-mortem interval was traditionally divided into three stages, the first stage, the immediate, then the early, and the late stage. The right step is described by the body undergoing quick biochemical and changes in the physiological pattern. The leading causes being the absence of blood circulation and the loss of regulation systems. It is mostly described as the interval between the death of the somatic and other cells. The early PMI is the essential stage for estimation. It is a critical stage for the process of evaluation. It is divided into three stages, the rigor mortis, the livor motis, and algor mortis and usually last about 3 to 72 hours of death.
Algor Mortis is the cooling of the body caused by the hypothalamus regulation and the loss of heat to the environment. It is the most accurate though cumbersome procedures are involved. The estimation measures the rectal temperatures. Rigor mortis, on the other hand, is described as the stiffening of muscles due to the depletion of ATP. It happens immediately after death, and thus the time of death can be determined by checking how much muscles have been depleted. The change is more comfortable recorded in small muscles. The Livor mortis is the final alteration that involves the discoloration of the skin to purplish color, resulting from the collection of blood vessels because of gravity. They develop as spots then coalesce to form larger patches and cover the whole skin with time. There is fixation, which is confirmed by applying pressure with thumbs and determining a PMI more exceptional than 12 hours.