Star-shaped wound. Contact wounds in regions of the body where only a thin layer of skin and tissue overlies the bone usually have a stellate appearance (ex. Head). This wound is due to the effects of the expansion of gas at discharge. Where a thin layer of skin overlies bone, these gases expand between the skin and outer table of the skull, lifting up and ballooning/bursting out of the skin; thus tearing the skin in a star shape.
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