Issues that arise in the assessment of pedestrian deaths.

Road traffic crashes are responsible for the deaths of 1.35 million people annually around the globe, and pedestrian fatalities account for 23% of these cases. Issues that arise in assessing these deaths involve evaluation of the type of impact, the type and speed of the vehicle, the behavior of the pedestrian and the extent of the injuries. The types of injuries encountered at autopsy vary with age and body habitus. The forensic pathologist's role is to document injuries and to determine if and how they may have been caused by a particular vehicle(s). Patterned injuries may have been caused by impact with components of the vehicle chassis or from being run over by tires. Determining the manner of death may sometimes be problematic and suicides and homicides may be confused with accidents. The following commentary explores and discusses issues that arise in the assessment of these cases.