Forensic Pathology

Question 1

What is a post-mortem examination (autopsy)?

Answer 1

A methodical investigation of the body

Question 2

True or false? If it appears obvious what the cause of death is you should still carry out a post-mortem examination of the body

Answer 2

True

Question 3

What are the 4 steps to the process of a post-mortem examination?

Answer 3

1. External examination (wounds, bruising, fibres/ tissues under fingernails
2. Internal examination (look at organs for signs of disease/damage)
3. Microscopical examination (histopathology)
4. Biochemical/analytical examination (blood biochemistry and drug analysis)

Question 4

What is the full process of conducting a post-mortem examination?

Answer 4

• Circumstances
• Post mortem (external and internal)
• Samples (tissues and body fluids)
• Histopathology
• Extraction (chemical analysis)
• Identify/quantify)
• Toxic chemical present? Fatal dose?

Question 5

What are teeth and dental records important for?

Answer 5

Identification of the individual

Question 6

What should you analyse during an internal post-mortem examination and what could this identify?

Answer 6

-Stomach contents
-Urine
-Bile
Which could identify poisoning

Question 7

What does a post-mortem examination tell us a great deal about?

Answer 7

The cause and circumstances of death

Question 8

What is histopathology?

Answer 8

The changes in tissues caused by disease

Question 9

True or false? A post-mortem examination is carried out by strict procedure to determine the cause of death

Answer 9

True

Question 10

What does the injury in a post-mortem examination identify?

Answer 10

Weapon and weapon type (e.g. knives cause different and characteristic wounds)

Question 11

What should you look for during an external examination?

Answer 11

Look for bruises, cuts, holes

Photography is important

Fingernails (skin, fibres, hairs, drugs, soil, plant debris)

Question 12

What is the process for conducting an internal examination?

Answer 12

1. Make an incision down the middle of the body (make sure you cut around the belly button)
2. Peel back the skin
3. Saw through the rib cage
4. Remove all organs
5. Weigh all organs
6. Investigate the organs (check for abnormalities, such as weird colouring)
7. Histopathology
8. Analysis (take the urine, stomach contents/liver contents)

Question 13

What should you do when you’ve found a stab wound?

Answer 13

• Stab a normal piece of leather with different weapons to see if it matches the shape of the stab wound on the body

Question 14

How does Histopathology work?

Answer 14

1. Take the organ
2. Slice it
3. then look under a microscope