An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode and manner of death or to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present for research or educational purposes.

1. By
Ms. Preeti
SMVDCoN

2. INTRODUCTION
postmortem•An autopsy is also known as
examination, necropsy or obduction
thorough
injury
•It is a medical procedure that consists of a
examination of a dead body to determine the cause
& manner of death & to evaluate any disease or
that may be present
•It is usually performed by a specialized medical doctor
called a pathologist.

3. ▪ An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction,
necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical
procedure that consists of a thorough examination of
a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode
and manner of death or to evaluate any disease or
injury that may be present for research or educational
purposes. In most cases, a medical examiner or
coroner can determine cause of death and only a
small portion of deaths require an autopsy.

4. •The term “autopsy” derived
from the Greek word “to
see for oneself”
•“ Necropsy” is form the Greek
word “ seeing a dead body”
•Necropsy is the term for
a postmortem
examination on animal.

5. Purposes
▪ Autopsies are performed for either legal or medical purposes.
Autopsies can be performed when any of the following information is
desired:
▪ Determine if death wasnatural or unnatural
▪ Injury source and extent on the corpse
▪ Manner of death must be determined
▪ Time since death
▪ Establish identity of deceased
▪ Retain relevant organs
▪ If infant, determine live birth and viability

6. I t i s p e r f o r m e d i n c e r t a i n c a s e s s u c h a s :
o Committed suicide
o Unknown cause of death
o Unknown dead bodies
o Homicide (The killing of one
human being by another)
are examined
o The organs and tissues of the
body
the exact cause
to establish
of death , to
learn more about a disease

7. Externalexaminationofdeadbody
withoutincisions,fluidscanbe collected
with the helpof needle.
e.g.Blood,bile,Urine
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POST MORTEM

8. Rules for Medico-LegalAutopsy
Authorization.
Identification.
Visit of scene of crime.
History of the case.
Verification of the injuries noted by the
police.
Examination.
Notes.
Preservation of viscera and other
tissue.
List of artifacts.

9. AUTOPSY TYPES:
Post-mortem
examination
Medical/clinical/
pathological/
hospital autopsy.
Anatomical
autopsy
Psychological
autopsy
VirtualAutopsy
Medico-legal
autopsy

10. I.MEDICAL/ACADEMIC
AUTOPSY:
Carriedon a patient
who dies in ahospital
duringcourse of treatment.
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11. OBJECTIVES
 1. Todetermine the cause ofdeath.
 2. Toconfirm or establish theclinical
diagnosis
 3. Toevaluate the effects oftreatment
given during life.
 4.Performed by a pathologist with
consent of relatives.

12. II.ANATOMICAL AUTOPSY
It is performed to study normal
structure of human body.
Mostly on unclaimed dead bodies
Anatomist and medical students
perform this.

13. III. PSYCHOLOGICALAUTOPSY
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 It is undertaken on alleged cases of suicide to know about
the mental status of deceased at the time of death.
 It is perform to know about:
Background of person
His habits ,mental status, personality, character.
Relation to others
Sources of collection of information are
Family members,
friends,
professional
colleagues,
teachers
physicians

14. IV.POSTMORTEM EXAMINATION
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Examination of external
of corpse bysurfaces
inspection
incision
without
for
giving
systemic
examination.
However specimen of body
fluids like blood bile urine
may be collected.

15. V. VIRTUALAUTOPSY
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 It is a postmortem examination
without compromising the integrity
of the body, even without collection
of sample.
 Due to some reason or disease theautopsy
of dead body is not possible then by the
help of radiological examination we can
detect the cause of death.
 Methods
 X-rays, ultrasound,
CT scan MRI.

16. VI. MEDICO-LEGALAUTOPSY
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Essential examination
of dead body,
to rule out or establish
foul play in death.

17. II. MEDICO-LEGALAUTOPSY
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It is perform in pursuance
of law to establish the
cause and manner of death
and also to establish or
rule out foul play.

18. CLASSIFICATION: Three main types
• Forensic • Clinical
• /academic • Coroner’s

19. 1. FORENSIC
•This is done for medical legal
purposes
•No family permission is required
to complete this type of autopsy
•This is carried out when the cause
of death may be a criminal matter
such as accident or burns

20. 2. CLINICAL/ ACADEMIC
•This is usually performed in hospitals for
research & study purposes
•For a clinical autopsy to take place, cause of
death must be established & a death
certificate completed
•Tocomplete this type of autopsy,permission
from the deceased’s legal next of kin is

21. 3. CORONER’S
•This type of autopsy involves cases where no
medical cause of death is readily available
•Cause, manner & mechanism of death are in
question
•Eventually, the prospectors will identify
whether the cases deserve comprehensive
forensic autopsy or a routine postmortem

22. FORENSIC
AUTOPSY

23. •It is used to determine the cause of death.
Deaths are placed in following manners :
•Natural
•Accident
•Suicide
•Homicide
•Undetermined

24. THE PROCESS
•The body is received at a medical examiner’s office or
hospital in a body bag or evidence sheet
•A brand new body bag is used for each bodyto
ensure that only evidence from that body is
contained within the bag
•An Evidence sheets are an alternate way to
transport the body
•An evidence sheet is a sterile sheet in which the
body is covered

25. PHYSICAL EXAMINATION INVOLVES
External
examination
Internal
examination

26. EXTERNAL EXAMINATION
•After the body is received, It is first photographed
•The examiner then notes the kinds of clothes & their
position on the body before they are removed
•Next, any evidence such a s residue, flakes of paint or
other material is collected from the external surface of
the body
•Ultraviolet light may also be used to search body
surfaces for any evidence not easily visible to the
naked eye

27. •Samples of hair, nails are taken & the body may also be
radio graphically imaged
•Once the external evidence is collected, the body is
removed from the bag, undressed & any wound present are
examined
•The body is cleaned, weighed & measured in
preparation for the internal examination
•The scale used to weigh the body is often designed to
accommodate the cart that body is transported on, its
weight is then deducted from the total weight shown to
give the weight of the body

28. •If not already within an autopsy room, the body is
transported to the table of autopsy room
•Ageneral description of the body such as: race,
sex, age, hair color & length, eye color & other
distinguishing features(birthmarks, old
scar tissue, moles etc) is then made
•A hand held voice recorder or a standard
examination form is normally used to record
this information

29. INTERNAL EXAMINATION
• If not already in place, a plastic or rubber brick called a “body
block” is placed under the back of the body, causing the arms &
neck to fall backward while stretching & pushing the chest
upward to make it easier to cut open
• This gives the prospector/a pathologist or assistance,
maximum exposure to the trunk
• After this, the internal examinationbegins
• The internal examination consists of inspecting the internal
organs of the body for evidence of trauma or other indications of
cause of death

30. •A large & deep “Y” shape incision can be
made from behind each ear & running down
the sides of neck, meeting at the
breast bone
•This is the approach most often used in
forensic autopsies so as to allow
maximum exposure of neck structures for
later detailed examination

31. •A “T” shape incision made from the tips of both
shoulder, in a horizontal line across the region of
the collar bones to meet at sternum in the
middle
•This initial cut is used more often to produce a
more aesthetic finish to the body when it is re-
constituted as stitching marks will not be as
apparent as with a “Y”shape
•A single vertical cut is made from the middleof

33. RECONSTITUTION OF THEBODY
•After the examination, the body has an open & empty
chest cavity with chest flaps open on both sides, the top of
the skull is missing & the skull flaps are pulled
over the face & neck
•It is unusual to examine the face, arms, hands or legs
internally.
•All the organs & tissue must be returned to the body
unless permission is given by family to retain any tissue
for further investigation

35. •Normally, the internal body cavity is lined with
cotton wood or an appropriate material, the
organs are then placed into a plastic bag to
prevent leakage & returned to the body cavity
•The chest flaps are then closed & sewn back
together & the skull cap is sewed back in place
•Then the body may be wrapped in a sheet

36. PRE AUTOPSY FORMALITIES/ PROTOCOL OFAUTOPSY
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1. VISIT OF SCENE OFCRIME
2. TRANSPOSITION OFCORPS
3. REGISTRATION OF DEAD BODIES
4. STORAGE OF DEAD BODIES
5. LEGALFORMALITIES
6. OTHER FORMALITIES
7. PLACE OF PERFORMINGAUTOPSY

37. A. VISIT OFSCENEOFCRIME
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 Not done in our country but in
European countries the autopsy
surgeon visits the scene of crime.
The action done there are
1. Cordening of scene.
2. Position in relation to
surrounding objects
3. Presence of or position of weapons,
blood
stains, marks of struggle
4. Preservation of foot prints andother
trace
evidence.
5. Photography of scene.

38. B.TRANSPOSITIONOF CORPSE
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 The dead bodies should be transported to mortuary rapped in plastic bags
,tied on both ends, with all its belongings

39. C.REGISTRATION OFDEAD BODIES
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On receipt of corp. authorized staff
should make entries in two registers
1. General Register
2. Autopsy Register

40. COLUMNS OF GENERAL REGISTERARE
1. Serial numbers
2. Date and time of receipt of corpse
3. Name and ID of diseased
4. Name and No of police officials and his police
station
5. Date and time of delivery of corpse
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41. COLUMNS OF AUTOPSY REGISTERARE
1. Yearly No.
2. Autopsy No.
3. Name, date and time of autopsy.
4. Details about specimen collected and lab where
sent.
5. Provisional /final conclusion regarding cause
of death.
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42. STORAGEOFDEADBODIES
There are two types of storage..
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• -20 0C
• [for preservation]
Long
term at
• +4 0C
• [for autopsy purpose]
Short
term at

43. PLACE OF PERFORMINGAUTOPSY
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MORTUARY: is a room or a
building usually part of the
hospital to which dead bodies
are taken to be kept for until
their burial or some other
disposal. Autopsy room is that
part of the mortuary where dead
bodies are dissected.

45. INSTRUMENTSCOMMONLYUSED IN
AUTOPSY
 Surgical blade/knife
 Scissors
 Probe
 Dissecting forceps
 Cartilage knife
 Rib shears
 Chisel
 Hammer
 Saw
 Bone forceps
 Skull elevator
 Brain knife
 Scalpel
 Knife
 Measuring jug
 Weighing machine
 Magnifying lens
 Trays (steel)
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46. INSTRUMENTSCOMMONLYUSED IN
AUTOPSY
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Surgical hand gloves
Sewing material
Preservatives
Labeling / sealing
material