The Problem of Restraint Asphyxia

By Nana Dadzie Ghansah

The word asphyxia comes from the Greek and literally means “without a pulse”. It is an amalgamation of the words “a” meaning “without” and “sphuxis” meaning “pulse”.

Nowadays, asphyxia (or asphyxiation) denotes a condition where due to abnormal breathing, the supply of oxygen to the body becomes deficient. It can result in death.

Experts delineate three main causes of asphyxia: suffocation, strangulation, and chemical asphyxia.

Suffocation is due to deprivation of oxygen in the environment or blockage of the external or internal air passages.

Smoke during a fire can cause that. Also choking on food or a foreign object are causes of suffocation. Smothering, which could be accidental (children) or homicidal are further examples.

Then are the instances where pressure on the chest or abdomen restricts breathing. That is a type of suffocation known as traumatic or mechanical asphyxia. Examples would be a car slipping off a jack and falling onto the chest of the person working underneath it or a workman buried following the collapse of an excavation site.

Another type of this kind of asphyxia is known as positional asphyxia and occurs when the victim is trapped or pinned in such a way that the neck or breathing is…