Dr. David Benway
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Autopsy® is the premier end-to-end open source digital forensics platform. Built by Sleuth Kit Labs with the core features you expect in commercial forensic tools, Autopsy is a fast, thorough, and efficient hard drive investigation solution that evolves with your needs.
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Autopsies are usually performed by a specialized medical doctor called a pathologist. Only a small portion of deaths require an autopsy to be performed, under certain circumstances. In most cases, a medical examiner or coroner can determine the cause of death.
Jan 11, 2024 · An autopsy is a medical examination of a body after death. Pathologists perform autopsies to try to find the specific cause and manner of death. There are two types of autopsies: forensic and clinical. Contents Overview Test Details Results and Follow-Up Additional Common Questions.
- Overview
- Who performs an autopsy?
- Who can request an autopsy?
- Who pays for an autopsy when someone dies?
- Process
- Findings
- Next steps
- Frequently asked questions
- Summary
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Forensic pathologists can use autopsies to discern someone’s identity, determine the cause and manner of death, and estimate when death occurred. However, not all autopsies yield clear findings.
Legal entities, hospitals, and individual citizens can all request autopsies.
As the same 2022 review explains, autopsies require medical professionals with special training. These medical professionals are called pathologists. Part of their training covers how to examine dead people’s bodies and their organs in order to acquire relevant information.
Coroner’s autopsy vs. hospital autopsy
Forensic or coroner’s autopsies can help in cases of suspicious, unknown, or potentially aggressive causes of death.
Another type of autopsy called a clinical or hospital autopsy, happens in a hospital setting with a pathologist and is requested by the family of the deceased to ascertain why their loved one may have passed away.
Legal authorities within the state, hospital officials, and individual citizens can all request autopsies.
As the aforementioned 2022 review explains, legal authorities must request an autopsy when someone has died unexpectedly, under suspicious circumstances, or “unnaturally.” In this context, an “unnatural” death means a death from an unexpected cause, such as the discovery of the corpse of an otherwise healthy person. It could be the result of factors like untreated health problems, accidental trauma, suicide, or homicide.
Hospital officials can also request autopsies. This may be necessary when hospital treatment has failed to prevent death. Under these circumstances, the hospital may want to understand the details of their patient’s death.
Individual citizens can also request autopsies for friends, family members, or loved ones. They can do so via private autopsy services.
If a state orders a coroner’s autopsy, then the state must bear its costs. This can happen during the course of a criminal investigation. The relatives or carers of whoever has died do not need to contribute to the payment in any way.
However, some individuals may wish to request an autopsy for someone that they knew, even if the state did not order one. In this case, the individual in question must bear the cost of the autopsy. Costs may vary from state to state.
As the aforementioned 2022 review explains, the exact details of an autopsy may vary from case to case. They process might involve:
•body weight and other physical measurements
•photographs to document bruises and other injuries
•radiographs, such as X-rays
•fingerprints
•retrieval of any foreign bodies, such as bullets, glass fragments, etc.
Forensic pathologists will relay information to whoever has requested the autopsy. This may be a legal authority, a hospital, or an individual. Legal authorities and hospitals may then pass this information to the deceased person’s family or loved ones.
Not all autopsies yield definitive results. Sometimes, forensic pathologists cannot determine the deceased person’s identity, time of death, or cause of death.
What happens after an autopsy depends on many details, which can vary from case to case.
As the same 2022 review states, people can request second autopsies. This can happen when a first autopsy yields inconclusive findings. However, if the findings seem conclusive, the relevant authorities can use them. For instance, the findings may become evidence for a police investigation or court case.
What happens to the body after an autopsy?
After an autopsy, an individual’s body becomes the responsibility of either family members or the state.
How long after death can an autopsy be done?
Forensic pathologists can perform autopsies many years after death.
Can you see a body after an autopsy?
Family and loved ones should be able to see the body after an autopsy.
Autopsies are postmortem examinations performed by forensic pathologists to find out information about a deceased person. This may be their identity, an estimate of when the death occurred, or the cause and manner of death.
Forensic pathologists can do all this with visual inspection techniques, surgical methods, laboratory tests, and by examining clothing or items on a body.
An autopsy is a postmortem examination of a body to find out information about the death. Learn about the different types of autopsies, who can request and pay for them, and what happens after an autopsy.
Dec 1, 2022 · An autopsy is a detailed dissection of a deceased person, done to determine why they died. If you and your family are dealing with the sudden loss of a loved one, you may find comfort in getting...
Sep 7, 2024 · Autopsy, dissection and examination of a dead body and its organs and structures. An autopsy may be performed to determine the cause of death, to observe the effects of disease, and to establish the evolution and mechanisms of disease processes. Learn more about autopsies, including their history.
Learn what an autopsy is, why it is done, and how it is performed. Find out who can request an autopsy and how long it takes to get the results.
