Abstract Tension gastrothorax is a rare and potentially fatal complication of a diaphragmatic hernia, in which a massively dilated, intrathoracic stomach compresses the lungs and mediastinum, causing cardiorespiratory compromise, in a mechanism akin to tension pneumothorax. Although it is very rare, tension gastrothorax has been reported in the literature; however, such reports are almost exclusively restricted to its clinical presentation and treatment in emergency departments. To the best of our knowledge, no adult autopsy case reports of tension gastrothorax have been reported in the literature. We present 2 adult autopsy case reports in which we believe the cause of death was tension gastrothorax, followed by a discussion of what a tension gastrothorax is and its potential etiology, and finally, we discuss the difficulties of making the diagnosis at autopsy, including how postmortem computed tomography imaging can be hugely beneficial as it was in one of our cases.

Michael Andrew Johnstone

Sam Hoggard

Joanna Dixon

American Journal of Forensic Medicine & Pathology

Drawing on the expertise of leading forensic pathologists, lawyers, and criminologists, The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology presents up-to-date coverage of forensic medical practices worldwide. Each issue of the journal features original articles on new examination and documentation procedures.

While most articles are available as web based articles, PDF and in ePub reader format, some earlier articles do not have PDFs available. If you would like to view an article in the ePub format, you will need to download an ePub reader to view this file, a number of which are available for free online.

The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology draws on the expertise of leading forensic pathologists, lawyers, and criminologists to provide up-to-date coverage of forensic medical practices worldwide. Each issue features original articles on new examination and documentation procedures. While most articles are available online in web-based formats, PDF, and ePub, some earlier articles may not have PDF versions available. If you wish to view an article in ePub format, you will need to download an ePub reader, many of which are available for free online.

《美国法医学与病理学杂志》汇聚了顶尖法医病理学家、律师和犯罪学家的专业知识，提供全球法医学实践的最新动态。每期杂志都包含关于新的检查和文档程序的原创文章。虽然大多数文章可以在线访问，包括PDF和ePub格式，但一些早期文章可能没有PDF版本。如果您希望查看ePub格式的文章，您需要下载一个ePub阅读器，网上有许多免费的选择可供下载。

Category	Quartile
医学	4
医学, 医学法	4
医学, 病理学	4

Fatal Tension Gastrothorax

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