Embalming introduction

1. EMBALMING
HISTORY,ORIGIN AND TYPES
Dr.S.R.Sita

2. DEFINITION
• Embalming is one of the
humankind’s longest practiced arts,is
a means of ARTIFICIALLY
PRESERVING THE DEAD HUMAN
BODY.
• MODERN EMBALMING is defined as
the study and science of treating a
dead human body to achieve
antiseptic condition,a pre-mortem
appearance and preservation

3. ESMOLD R LONG M.D,
MEDICAL HISTORIAN
“Nothing gives a better
perspective of the subject than an
appreciation of the steps by which
it has reached its present state.”
INTRODUCTION

4. TYPES OF PRESERVATION
• Natural preservation
• Artificial means of preservation

5. NATURAL MEANS OF PRESERVATION
• Freezing
• Dry cold
• Dry heat
• Nature of the soil at the place of interment

6. FREEZING
• Ice and snow of glaciers or snow capped mountains

7. DRY COLD
• Morgue @ST,Bernard mountain,Switzerland produced true mummies by passage
of cold,dry air current over the corpses

8. DRY HEAT
• Dry warm areas-Egypt,Peru,South west America

9. NATURE OF THE SOIL
• Peat bog-soil impregnated with high tannin or aluminium or copper

10. ARTIFICIAL MEANS OF PRESERVATION
• Simple heat
• Powders
• Evisceration and immersion
• Evisceration and drying
• Evisceration,local incision and immersion
• Simple immersion
• Arterial injection and evisceration
• Cavity injection
• Arterial injection
• Arterial injection and cavity treatment
• Artificial cold

11. SIMPLE HEAT
• Slow drying in the oven heated with a mixture of slacked lime

12. POWDERS
• Saw dust,Zinc sulfate

13. EVISCERATION AND IMMERSION
• egyptions

14. EVISCERATION AND DRYING
• Guanche method

15. • Evisceration ,local incision and immersion-Europe (France) –AD 650-1830
• Simple immersion-alcohol,brine
• Artificial injection and evisceration-Hunter brothers
• Cavity injection and immersion-Gabriel clauderus method
• Arterial injection-gannal and sucquet
• Arterial injection and cavity treatment-present method
• Artificial cold-refrigeration

16. PERIOD OF EMBALMING
FIRST PERIOD
• Egypt
• 3200 BC to 650 AD
• For resurrection
• Declined with Christianity and arabs
invasion
SECOND PERIOD
• Europe
• AD 650-AD 1861
• For detailed anatomical dissection
and study

17. CONTINUE
THIRD PERIOD
• AD 1861 to present
• Europe-America:for funeral puposes and public transport

18. ESTABLISHMENT OF EMBALMING SCHOOLS
• During AD 650-1861-Anatomist used embalming for preservation of anatomical
material
• 19 th century-time of J N Gannal(France) and Thomas Holmes (US)-Public interest
aroused-for funeral puposes.

19. FIRST PERIOD-EGYPTIAN PERIOD
• EARLY PRE DYNASTIC period

20. CONTINUE
• LATE EGYPTIAN PERIOD

21. VARIATION IN EMBALMING TECHNIQUES
• 3 METHODS
• FIRST METHOD(costly)-
1. Brain removal
2. Flank incision-empty whole cavity and rinse with palm wine and aromatics
3. Sew it
4. Steep the body in the natrum for 70 days
5. Wash and wrap with bandages
6. Seal with gum
7. Put in wooden case and make it stand against the wall

24. SECOND METHOD
• No incision technique
• steps
1. Injection of CEDAR oil into belly through anus
2. Cork the anus
3. Laid in salt
4. Release the cork-bowels and insides broughtout in a state of dissolution
5. Natrum dissolves flesh-onlu skin and bones remain

25. THIRD MODE
• Wash the inside with syrmas and salt the body for 70 days and return it
• Other methods-evisceration,filling the body cavity with odourous substance

26. PERIOD OF ANATOMIST
• CLAUDIUS GALEN-130 AD-200 AD-Book on anatomy of pigs and monkey
• Around 13-14 th century king Fredrick 2 gave two cadavers for study
• Stealing of bodies for dissection
• Need for preservation of the bodies for studying increased

27. TECHNIQUES FOR PRESERVING HUMAN BODY
1. DRYING of cadavers or components -sunlight or controlled heat in oven
2. Injection-LEONARDO DA VINCI injected wax to secure castings of ventricles of
brain and other internal areas
• Steps
• Container for injected material and cannula(hollow straw/metal)attached by
ligature to the animal bladder
• Bladder filled with fluid and tied
• Entrance of liquid into the cavity

28. SYRINGES
• At first –syringes similar to hypodermic syringe
• BARTHOLIN-1 st continuous syringe

29. • JAN SWAMMERDAM invented injection of preservatives like
alcohol,turpentine,wine,rum,spirits of wine(pure alcohol),coloured waxes
• FREDRICK RUYSCH –anatomical teaching

30. • BLANCHARD-used syringes ,flushing of intestines with water and then with spirits of wine and turpentine-from mouth to anus,then anus was corked
• WILLIAM HUNTER –STEPS
1. Injected femoral artery with solution composed of oil of turpentine,venice turpentine,oil of chamomile,oil of lavender,vermillion dye
2. Red appearance of the body
3. Thorax and abdomen opened-viscera removed ,fluid squeezed from them and was treated separately with camphorated spirits of wine
4. Through the aorta the body was again washed with camphorated spirits of wine
5. Viscera returned to the body mixed with powder of camphor,resin and niter
6. Entire skin rubbed with oils of rosemary and lavender
7. Body placed in a box in a bed of plaster of paris for 4 years
8. Then box reopened-if dessication appeared imperfect-bed of gypsum was added

31. • EMBALMING -<8HRS OF DEATH IN
SUMMER AND <24 HOURS OF
DEATH IN WINTER
• JOHN HUNTER-Surgeon,great
anatomical teaching
• Discovered the HUNTER’S CANAL

32. JEAN NICOLAS GANNAL
• Solutions of acid(acetic,arsenous,nitric,hydrochloric),alkali salts(copper –mercury
alum),tannin creosote alcohol,sodium chloride,alum,nitrates of potash,acetate of
alumina and chloride of alumina
• 6 quarts of acetate of alumina injected through the carotid artery without
drainage of blood
• No evisceration
• Immersed in injecting solution

33. • In his book –HISTORY OF EMBALMING-he has included that the bodies preserved
by the above method ,disinterred from 3 months to 13 months of burial-was
found exactly in the same state of preservation and appearance as when buried

34. MODERN EMBALMING
• From 1861 till present
• Europe –US
• Used during civil war
• Arterial embalming through carotid/femoral arteris
• No cavity treatment given
• When injecting is not possible-trunk eviscerated and cavity filled with saw dust
• Chemicals used- arsenals,zinc chloride,bichloride of mercury,salts of alumina,sugarof
lead,salts,alkalis,acids
• TRANSPORTATION OF CADAVERS

35. EMBALMING SURGEONS
• Dr.Thomas holmes
• William j bunel
• Daniel h prunk-zinc chloride
• Dr.Richard bar
• Arterial injection =cavity
Treatment gave great results

36. METHODS OF EMBALMING
• Arterial embalming
• Cavity embalming
• Hypodermic embalming
• Surface embalming
• Injection techniques
• Embalming of autopsied bodies
• Embalming of infants
• Delayed embalming
• Special conditions-burnt bodies,radiation exposed bodies,ascites,atherosclerosis,decubitus ulcer,mycotic infection,anatomical
embalming,maggots,pacemaker,obesity
• Soft embalming

37. ARTERIAL EMBALMING
• Arterial fluid is injected through
artery,blood drained from veins
• Fluid is distributed through the arch
of aorta
• Emblaming fluid reaches
thecapillaries and enters the tissues
• Changes the protein colloidal nature
of the blood cells

38. CAVITY EMBALMING
• A very strong preservative solution is
introduced into the abdomen and
thoracic cavity through trocar or long
needle
• Contents of the organs –removed by
aspiration

39. HYPODERMIC EMBALMING
• Supplemental embalming
• Preserve local areas of the body by
SUBCUTANEOUS injecting of certain
fluid by hypodermic syringe or
needle
• Arterial/cavity fluid is used

40. SURFACE EMBALMING
• Local body areas are preserved by application of suitable chemicals(arterial/cavity
fluids)
• Packs of cotton or gauze soaked in chemicals are applied

41. INJECTION TECHNIQUES
• One point injection
• Split injection
• Multipoint injection
• Restricted cervical injection

42. SOFT EMBALMING
• Arterial or venous infusion with propylene
glycol,ammonium nitrate,potassium
nitrate,boric acid,low amounts of formalin
• Sloughing of keratin-end point
• Body submerged -2-3 months in immersion
fluid
• Then taken out,tightly wrapped in plastic
bag
• Kept in freezer
• 36 months
• Cadavers soft pliable,used for surgical skills