Detection of intracerebral hemorrhage in putrefied pig brains using computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and a urine test strip

The autoptic detection of intracerebral hemorrhages in putrefied brains is challenging, Imaging techniques such as post-mortem computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging have proven to be useful in the detection of such findings in decomposed brain tissue.Urine test strips have long been used to detect various substances, including blood, in the urine. To evaluate their suitability for detecting blood in decomposed brain tissue, 1.5 mL of human blood was instilled into three pig brains, while three control brains received 1.5 mL tap water. The brains were let to decompose at 25 °C for 15 days, during which computed tomography and magnetic resonance scans were performed at regular intervals in order to detect hemorrhage-suspicious areas.After 15 days, the brains were extracted and 100 µL of brain tissue were mixed in 500 mL tap water. The urine test strip Medi-Test Uryxxon® turned slightly positive for hemoglobin in the control group and highly positive in the test group.In contrast, imaging techniques failed to detect the intracerebral hemorrhages, likely due to the small hemorrhage volume and, in the case of magnetic resonance imaging, lack of tissue reaction. With progressing putrefaction, the anatomy of the brains ceased to be appreciable.These findings suggest that a urine test strip such as the Medi-Test Uryxxon® may provide a simple qualitative method for detecting small intracerebral hemorrhages in putrefied brains where imaging techniques fail.