Table of contents:
- What is the purpose of a corpse autopsy?
- What happened at the autopsy of the corpse?
- What is done to the organs that have been removed at the autopsy of the cadaver?
For you fans of detective films, you must be very familiar with scene autopsy of a murder victim in a morgue - the body is dissected by forensic experts to find out what caused her death, and how and when exactly she was killed. All this information is then transferred to the investigation team to hunt down the culprit. But of course what happens in the real world is not as easy as what is seen on the screen. Are you curious about what the autopsy process is like? Read on to find out more.
What is the purpose of a corpse autopsy?
A corpse autopsy is a procedure to find out about the cause, way, when, and how a person dies. According to the NHS, autopsy of cadavers is common in cases of death that:
- Unexpected, such as sudden death of a baby
- Violent acts (domestic violence / bullying / sexual violence / deliberate and unintentional murder / other crimes)
- Unnatural or suspicious, eg suicide, drug overdose, poisoning
- Accident victim
- Death that occurs after a procedure in a hospital, such as death after surgery
- No known cause
Autopsy of corpses is also carried out for medical research purposes in various research institutions including on medical campuses, for example knowing how a disease can cause death.
What happened at the autopsy of the corpse?
A cadaver autopsy is usually performed by a pathologist or forensic doctor. A cadaver autopsy should be done as soon as possible, usually two to three days after a person's death. Basically, the faster, the better.
The first time the doctor will perform an external examination of the body. All facts regarding the condition of the body are recorded and recorded.
Starting from height and weight, tooth shape, eye color, scratches or scars, to tattoos or birthmarks that can be used as proof of identity. The recording can use a photo camera as much and as accurately as possible, covering all the details of the body.
Then an internal surgery is performed. Cadaver surgery is performed to check the condition of the organs in his body. For example, to see the presence of residual toxins or other substance residues in the heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, and stomach contents that may be the cause of death.
Surgery is also performed to look for organ damage to determine the cause of death if no suspicious substance residue is found.
Surgery is performed by making a large incision in the body of the body in the shape of a Y or a U, starting from both sides of the shoulder to the hip bone area.
The goal is to be able to reach the internal organs of the body. The skin and underlying tissue are separated, so that the ribs of the corpse and the space in the abdominal area or the midsection are clearly visible.
Then, the ribs at the front are removed so as to reveal the neck and chest organs. This allows the surgeon to remove the trachea, thyroid and parathyroid glands, esophagus, heart, thoracic aorta, and lungs.
After these organs are removed, the surgery can remove other organs underneath, such as the intestines, liver and bile, pancreas, spleen, kidneys and adrenal glands, ureters, bladder, abnormal aorta, and reproductive organs.
Sometimes, it is also necessary to examine the brain organs. To retrieve it, a cut is made to the head, from one ear to the other.
The skull was removed by sawing it first. After that, the brain that was clearly visible was slowly removed. This is done to find out whether the cause of death comes from the brain, if there are no abnormalities in other parts of the body.
What is done to the organs that have been removed at the autopsy of the cadaver?
Organs that have been removed from the body are usually examined with the naked eye first. There are several diseases that cause changes in the appearance of organs, so that organs can be seen with the naked eye. For example atherosclerosis, liver cirrhosis, and coronary heart disease.
Examination of internal organs is also carried out microscopically. Each organ is sampled and examined under a microscope. The microscope examination can take a while.
After completion, the removed internal organs can be returned to the body again or stored in a jar of formaldehyde if it is needed at any time for learning or research purposes, for example on campus. Of course this is with the approval of the family.
When the process is complete, the body that has been with the organs is sewn back together with the open parts and then returned to the family for burial or cremation. A full report will be available in the days to weeks thereafter.
