An autopsy, also known as a post-mortem examination, is a specialized surgical procedure used to determine the cause and manner of death. The cause of death is the medical reason explaining why a patient passed. The manner of death is the circumstances surrounding the death. Autopsies continually advance our understanding of disease. What we learn from autopsies allows clinicians to better understand disease processes, accurately diagnose diseases, improve therapy, and potentially aid other patients who are currently suffering from a similar disease. Forensic autopsies are a specialized form of autopsy with legal implications that are performed to determine if a given death was an accident, homicide, suicide, or a natural event.

Who Performs the Procedure?

Autopsies are performed by pathologists, medical doctors who have received specialty training in the diagnosis of diseases by the examination of body fluids and tissues.

Autopsies are performed for a variety of reasons :

1. To determine the cause of death
2. To ascertain whether clinical diagnoses are correct
3. To evaluate the effectiveness of medical or surgical treatment
4. To gain information for the family about possible inherited or genetic conditions
5. For teaching and/or research purposes in academic hospitals
6. To aid in criminal investigations of wrongful death
7. To provide closure and reassurance for family members who may have questions about diagnosis or treatment.

How Autopsy is Performed?

The procedure for performing an autopsy varies according to the extent and purpose of the examination. If there are no restrictions imposed by the family, most standard autopsies consist of an examination of the chest cavity, abdominal cavity, and the brain. To examine the organs in the chest and abdomen, the pathologist usually performs a Y- or U-shaped incision beginning at the shoulders that meets at the sternum (breast bone) and continues vertically down to the pubic bone. Examination of the brain is carried out through an incision made in the back of the skull from one ear to the other.

Before any incisions are made, the autopsy begins with a thorough physical examination of the outside of the body that includes determination of height and weight. Any scars, surgical incisions, wounds, or evidence of lesions on the skin are also described.

For examination purposes, the organs are usually removed from the body. The pathologist may weigh the organs individually and further dissect (cut) the tissue to look for abnormalities inside the organs. After the organs are viewed with the naked eye, small pieces of tissue are taken from the organs for microscopic examination. The physical and microscopic characteristics of each tissue are carefully described in detail.

At the end of an autopsy, the incisions made in the body are closed. The organs may be returned to the body or may be retained for teaching, research, or diagnostic purposes.

Types of Autopsy

There are four types of autopsies:

1. Medico-Legal Autopsy or Forensic autopsy are performed to find the cause and manner of death and to identify the decedent. They are generally performed, as prescribed by applicable law, in cases of violent, suspicious or sudden deaths, deaths without medical assistance or during surgical procedures.
2. Clinical or Pathological autopsies are performed to find a particular disease or for research purposes. They aim to determine, clarify, or confirm medical diagnoses that remained unknown or unclear prior to the patient's death.
3. Anatomical or academic autopsies are performed by students of anatomy for study purpose only.
4. Virtual or medical imaging autopsies are performed utilizing imaging technology only, primarily magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT).

What Does the Autopsy Report Contain?

When the autopsy and all special studies including microbial cultures and toxicity tests are completed, the pathologist prepares a detailed report. This report describes the observations made during the autopsy procedure and explains the microscopic findings and the results of any special studies that were performed. The report gives a list of medical diagnoses and a summary of the case, emphasizing the correlation between clinical diagnoses and the autopsy findings