Deaths on board: medical and legal implications for the maritime physician.

When death at sea occurs many people are implicated. The assignees of victims often look for detailed circumstances of deaths at sea, and the doctor, besides his preventative role, has to certify the death on board and try to determine the circumstances with a view to a legal investigation if it proves necessary. In this work are presented the main causes, facts, and characteristics of human deaths at sea, and the responsibility of the ship's doctor in case of death on board.