Journal de recherche médico-légale

Alcohol Influence in Violent Deaths

Abstract

Manoel E S Modelli and Stephane Mota Lourenco

Alcohol is a psychoactive drug, a central nervous system depressant, which is disinhibitory and causes euphoria. It is the most consumed depressant substance in the world. Its medico legal importance is due to association with changes in higher brain functions, blocking them and encouraging violent behavior directly related to crimes and accidents. The influence of alcohol on the cause of death is the primary factor in a substantial number of violent deaths. The IML-DF analyzes all violent deaths in the Federal District, which in 2014 owned a population of 2,852,000 inhabitants. The Federal District comprises a central region (Pilot Plan) and several satellite towns. In 2014, necropsy of 1,845 deceased people was due to violent deaths. Among them, 446 had positive blood alcohol and were analyzed in this study. The others had negative or alcohol was not measured due to the time elapsed between fact and death. Among the 1,845 examined deaths, traffic accidents accounted for 782 cases and homicides by firearm and white guns (knives) for 792 deaths. Among the 446 cases examined, the leading cause of death, with positive results for alcohol, was murder (37%), followed by traffic accidents (31%). The blood concentration of alcohol ranged from 0.01 to 10.4 g/l, an average of 1.74 ± 1.2 g/l. The average age of the cases was 35 years; and in cases of murder, the most frequent age group was between 18-29 years; and 30-39 years for traffic accidents. The results show a significant association between alcohol consumption and violent deaths.