A Case Report and Literature Review of Death by Potassium Chloride: Is it a Forensic Medicine Enigma?

The diagnosis of death from potassium chloride (KCl) injection is complex because it is a natural ion, so it is very difficult to trace the exogenous administration of drugs containing potassium. In these cases, it is important to perform a careful cadaver inspection, with the collection of circumstantial data on the scene, and proper autopsy investigations, in order to avoid errors regarding the reconstruction of the cause of death. The aim of this paper is to propose a forensic protocol, including evidence collected from the literature, that could help the medical examiner to perform the correct diagnosis, and also encourage control measures to avoid similar events, especially in nosocomial environments. This is important, especially for health professionals who can easily access drugs containing potassium. For this reason, we need to strengthen control measures of these drugs by proposing a double check in cases of pharmacological use, specifying the volume taken with a double authorization signature and the reasons for the withdrawal.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
(Copyright © 2024, Tarda et al.)