Autopsy

Rohit sah
 Introduction

• Autopsy is the scientific and systemic study of a dead body to find out the cause of
death and document findings.

• In each and every case the autopsy must be complete, all the body cavities should be
opened, and every organ must be examined
 Types of autopsy

1. Academic: Dissection carried out by the students of anatomy

2. Clinical or pathological autopsy
a. Complete
b. Partial
3. Medicolegal (forensic) autopsy

Clinical Autopsy
• It is also known as pathological or academic or hospital autopsy.
• It is performed by medical practitioner or treating doctor with the consent of relatives
to know the diagnosis or to confirm the diagnosis made prior to death.
• It's done in the usual hospital setting.
• Police requisition is not needed as it has no legal obligation.
Medicolegal Autopsy

• It is the autopsy done under the requirement of law to find out the cause of death,
identification of the deceased, appropriate time of death, temporal relationships of
injuries to the body, preservation of evidence and the presence of any concealed
unnatural condition such as poisoning.

• The legal authority sending requisition is usually a police officer not below the rank of
sub-inspector or an executive magistrate (CDO in Nepal).