Visual and spectrophotometric observations related to histology in a small sample of bruises from cadavers.

Spectrophotometry has been investigated as a means to estimate the age of bruises as experiments have indicated that it can be used to detect the presence of degradation products of hemoglobin (bilirubin and hemosiderin). However, there is no data relating spectrophotometric observations to histological findings in bruises of human skin. A small number of bruises in human cadavers were studied by spectrophotometry. The average first derivative value at 490 nm was more negative in bruises with stainable iron (hemosiderin) than in those without, confirming that spectrophotometry observations can indicate the presence of degradation products of hemoglobin in the skin. This confirms spectrophotometry may be a useful tool for estimating the age of bruises.