Autopsy: procedure, exhumation, artifacts
Forensic Medicine and Toxicology · MBBS
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Study notes
A bruise-like mark on a body turns out to be hypostasis — not injury. Postmortem artifacts mimic trauma: hypostasis (settled blood — purple, in intact skin, blanches early) vs bruise (extravasated — swollen, clotted, doesn't blanch; incision shows clot). The autopsy surgeon's incision test distinguishes — cut the mark: fluid blood oozes in hypostasis, clotted in bruise. Artifacts acquit the innocent and indict correctly — reading them is the autopsy's art.
Related topics
- Legal procedures: inquest, courts, medical evidence
- Medical jurisprudence: consent, negligence, medical records
- Thanatology: death — types, signs, postmortem changes
- Injuries: mechanical injuries, weapons, regional injuries
- Asphyxia: hanging, strangulation, drowning
- Thermal injuries: burns, electrocution, lightning