This document defines and classifies asphyxia, describing the signs, symptoms, and types of several asphyxial deaths including suffocation, hanging, strangulation, and drowning. It discusses the causes of death for each type and whether cases are more likely to be accidental, suicidal, or homicidal. Key points covered include the definitions of anoxia and hypoxia as related to asphyxia, classifications of mechanical and chemical asphyxia, and descriptions of hanging by ligature, partial versus complete hanging, and manual strangulation versus ligature strangulation.