History
In 1861, Zenker first reported on the autopsy findings of fat droplets found in the lungs of a railway worker who died due to severe thoraco-abdominal crush injury. In 1873, Bergmann diagnosed fat embolism clinically in a patient with fractured femur. In 1970, Gurd defined the characteristics of this phenomenon. Gurd later modified the fat embolism criteria together with Wilson, thus producing Gurd and Wilsons criteria for fat embolism syndrome in 1974. In 1983, Schonfeld suggested a scoring system for the diagnosis of fat embolism syndrome. In 1987, Lindeque proposed another scoring system that diagnose fat embolism syndrome by using respiratory changes alone. However, none of them have become universally accepted in the medical community.In 2015, Singaporean couple Pua Hak Chuan and Tan Hui Zhen were charged with the abuse and murder of Annie Ee Yu Lian, who died due to multiple physical abuse which lasted for eight months before her death. The cause of death was revealed to be acute fat embolism, which resulted from the blunt force impact caused by the beatings, which led to the fatty tissue entering the bloodstream and eventually entering the blood vessels in the lungs, which led to a blockage and cut off the circulation of oxygenated blood and led to Ees death by respiratory and cardiac failure. Two years later, for reduced charges of voluntarily causing grievous hurt with a weapon, Tan was sentenced to 16 years and six months in jail while Pua received 14 years imprisonment and 14 strokes of the cane.
Mitochondrial encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes (MELAS) is one of the family of mitochondrial diseases, which also include MIDD (maternally inherited diabetes and deafness,  MERRF syndrome, and Lebers hereditary optic neuropathy. It was first characterized under this name in 1984. A feature of these diseases is that they are caused by defects in the mitochondrial genome which is inherited purely from the female parent. The most common MELAS mutation is mitochondrial mutation, mtDNA, referred to as m.3243A>G. Signs and symptoms
MELAS is a condition that affects many of the bodys systems, particularly the brain and nervous system (encephalo-) and muscles (myopathy). In most cases, the signs and symptoms of this disorder appear in childhood following a period of normal development. Children with MELAS often have normal early psychomotor development until the onset of symptoms between 2 and 10 years old. Though less common, infantile onset may occur and may present as failure to thrive, growth retardation and progressive deafness. Onset in older children typically presents as recurrent attacks of a migraine-like headache, anorexia, vomiting, and seizures. Children with MELAS are also frequently found to have short stature.Most people with MELAS have a buildup of lactic acid in their bodies, a condition called lactic acidosis. Increased acidity in the blood can lead to vomiting, abdominal pain, extreme tiredness (fatigue), muscle weakness, loss of bowel control, and difficulty breathing. Less commonly, people with MELAS may experience involuntary muscle spasms (myoclonus), impaired muscle coordination (ataxia), hearing loss, heart and kidney problems, diabetes, epilepsy, and hormonal imbalances.