Outcomes of patients in trials; Better blood pressure treatment; Snake bites...( Indonesia 42 different organizations w...),Health

Indonesia 42 different organizations were involved in recovering bodies. None of the countries had sufficient refrigerated storage available to store bodies until they could be identified. Some effective alternatives were used (such as temporary burial in shallow graves) with the intention of exhuming the bodies later for identification. However, many bodies were hurriedly buried in mass graves because they were decomposing; these bodies were almost impossible to identify.

Methods and efficiency of identification varied between and within countries. One hospital in Sri Lanka excelled by systematically photographing all bodies brought in and recording sex, height, and personal effects: 87% of the bodies brought here were identified. But in most areas rates of identification were much lower. Simple methods of identification were the most useful: photographs, dental records, and personal effects found on the bodies. DNA analysis was only useful for a small number of bodies.

Procedures for disposal of the bodies also differed widely, and in some cases were dictated by religious needs--for example, in some Muslim communities all bodies were buried within 24 hours, making counting and identification of the dead very difficult. Mass graves were often used, but these caused problems; haphazard arrangement of the bodies meant that later exhumation and identification would be impossible.

The authors say there was virtually no health impact of the dead bodies on survivors. There were no epidemics among the surviving population, and that most effects were on those who handled bodies in temporary morgues, where there were a variety of sharp-implement injuries and splashes with body fluids, along with heat stress and dehydration.

The researchers concluded that the variation in how bodies were handled was due to a lack of national or local planning, along with a lack of practical guidelines. There was little coordination of all of the different
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Contact: Andrew Hyde
ahyde@plos.org
44-122-346-3330
Public Library of Science
5-Jun-2006

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