Although forensic medicine has been in existence for centuries in one guise or another, it is only with the recent growth in international research that it has begun to be acknowledged as a specific discipline in its own right. Many areas of progress are being made and this text aims to provide a unique, in-depth and critical update on selected topics that are of direct relevance to those practicing in the field including lawyers, police, medical and dental practitioners, forensic scientists and postgraduate/undergraduate medical students and undergraduate law students preparing for forensic medicine examinations.

This volume is designed to cover the wider aspects of forensic medicine, including the law, science, medicine (forensic pathology, clinical forensic medicine and forensic psychiatry) and dentistry. Topics covered include subjects of debate and/or uncertainty in areas where significant advances have been made and in those of current relevance to the forensic profession, Chapters provide a variety of approaches to the areas under discussion with reviews of current knowledge, information on significant changes and pointers to the future that the reader should be aware of.

Features:

• An authoritative review, for forensic medicine practitioners throughout the world, from leading international experts in the field.
• Provides critical commentary and updates on current practice.
• Topics include: a guide to the presentation of forensic medical evidence, bioterrorism, the paediatric hymen, assessment and interpretation of bone trauma in children, adult sexual assault, genital photography, forensic photography, common errors in injury interpretation, self-inflicted injuries and associated psychological profiles, bite marks and the role of the pathologist in aviation disasters.
• Includes a wealth of four colour figures to illustrate key points discussed within the text.

JOHN GALL is a forensic physician in private practice, Director of Southern Medical Services, Principal of Era Health and is a staff specialist Forensic Physician in the Victorian Paediatric Forensic Medical Service, located at the Royal Children's Hospital and Monash Medical Centre, Melbourne. He is a member of the International Editorial Board of the Journal of Legal and Forensic Medicine and Internet Journal of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology. He has published widely in the field of clinical forensic medicine and has spent many years teaching forensic medicine to undergraduates and graduates.

JASON PAYNE-JAMES is a forensic physician. He is Honorary Senior Lecturer, Cameron Forensic Medical Sciences, Barts & the London School of Medicine & Dentistry, University of London, UK. He is Director of Forensic Healthcare Services Ltd. He is external Consultant to the National Policing Improvement Agency and to the National Injuries Database in the UK. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Forensic & Legal Medicine. He has published widely in the field of clinical forensic medicine. He has also co-edited, co-authored and contributed to numerous books in the field including Black, Aggrawal and Payne-James: 'Age Estimation in the Living' 2010 (Wiley Blackwell).