Sharp Force Injury: Practice Question

Which is true regarding Langer’s lines:
  1. Incised wounds parallel to Langer’s lines create narrower gaping of wounds.
  2. They are perpendicular to muscle fibers.
  3. They are perpendicular to collagen fibers in the dermis.
  4. They are reliable to determine the approximate length of the blade.
  5. They have more of an effect on the skin for gunshot wounds than knife wounds.
Show Answer and Explanations

Incised wounds parallel to Langer’s lines create narrower gaping of wounds. — Correct answer

Correct. Incised wounds parallel to Langer’s lines create narrower gaping of wounds. Incised wounds perpendicular to Langer’s lines create more gaping wounds.

They are perpendicular to muscle fibers.

Incorrect. They are generally parallel to muscle fibers.

They are perpendicular to collagen fibers in the dermis.

Incorrect. They are generally parallel to collagen fibers in the dermis

They are reliable to determine the approximate length of the blade.

Incorrect. The length of the blade is not reliably determined by incised or stab wounds.

They have more of an effect on the skin for gunshot wounds than knife wounds.

Incorrect.

Summary

Summary: Incised wounds parallel to Langer’s lines create narrower gaping of wounds. Incised wounds perpendicular to Langer’s lines create more gaping wounds.
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