Autopsy

Postmortem Examination

Results

An autopsy is a medical procedure that consists of a thorough examination performed on a body after death, to evaluate disease or injury that may be present and to determine the cause and manner of a person's death. Following the autopsy, it may take several weeks for the results of specialized tests to be completed. For this reason, a final written autopsy report may take weeks to months. The pathologist or deceased person's doctor may speak directly to the family after the dissection portion of the autopsy and again after the final autopsy report is complete.

After performing the autopsy, the pathologist will generally make a statement about the cause and manner of death. Manner of death is defined as natural or unnatural. A natural death means the death occurred as a result of a disease or from the natural effects of old age. Some examples of natural causes include:

• Damage to the heart caused by a heart attack or heart failure.
• Damage to the brain caused by conditions such as tumors, bleeding, stroke, poorly controlled epilepsy, diabetes, or Alzheimer's disease.
• Damage to the lungs caused by a blood clot, bleeding, or pneumonia.
• Damage to organs in the abdomen, such as the stomach, spleen, liver, or kidneys.

An unnatural death means the death resulted from an unnatural, unexpected, unusual, or suspicious cause. If an injury caused or contributed to the death, the manner of death is called unnatural. Unnatural manners of death are homicide, suicide, accident, and undetermined. Unnatural deaths generally are investigated under authority of the medical examiner or coroner, and the determination of the manner of death requires a detailed investigation of the circumstances surrounding the death. Some unnatural causes of death include:

• Bullet wounds.
• An automobile accident or plane crash.
• Fire, drowning, or electrocution.
• Death resulting from extreme heat or cold.
• Poisoning or drug overdose.

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Author:	Jan Nissl, RN, BS	Last Updated: November 28, 2006
Medical Review:	Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine Corinne L. Fligner, MD - Anatomic Pathology
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