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Partial Autopsies

A leading pathologist's report found that more than half of autopsies carried out are unnecessary. The current system of requiring full autopsies in many cases causes delays in burial that are particularly problematic for Muslim families, who believe the dead should be buried as soon as possible. The report recommends using less invasive examination methods in 60% of cases to determine cause of death, saving money while being less traumatic for grieving families. It argues many referrals to coroners are not needed and that alternative examination techniques could provide sufficient information in most situations. Reducing unnecessary autopsies would respect families' religious beliefs while balancing the need to investigate deaths.

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Tifano Prasali Arian
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262 views

Partial Autopsies

A leading pathologist's report found that more than half of autopsies carried out are unnecessary. The current system of requiring full autopsies in many cases causes delays in burial that are particularly problematic for Muslim families, who believe the dead should be buried as soon as possible. The report recommends using less invasive examination methods in 60% of cases to determine cause of death, saving money while being less traumatic for grieving families. It argues many referrals to coroners are not needed and that alternative examination techniques could provide sufficient information in most situations. Reducing unnecessary autopsies would respect families' religious beliefs while balancing the need to investigate deaths.

Uploaded by

Tifano Prasali Arian
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Complete Autopsy Versus Restricted

Complete Autopsy:
An unrestricted or complete autopsy includes: cranial, abdominal, thoracic, and pelvic contents.
It may include spinal cord, lower extremities, or the posterior portion of the globe of the eyes. It
does not include the face or distal upper extremities. Non-routine examinations should be
specified explicitly on the permit (e.g. "Eyes may be removed for examination" or "Includes
examination of facial tumor"). Consult with the pathologist on call if you have questions about
the wording of permits.
Restricted Autopsy:
An unrestricted autopsy is always preferable. A partial autopsy often yields partial information.
If the family wishes to restrict the extent of examination, determine exactly what parts of the
body the family does not wish to have examined and state these restrictions as specifically as
possible. For example, "No brain examination" is much less restrictive than "Chest and abdomen
only". By wording the restriction in this way one can reduce or eliminate a family's distress
concerning the autopsy without unnecessarily limiting the information to be gained from the
procedure.
Sumber
:
http://www.fletcherallen.org/services/other_services/specialties/pathology___laboratory_medicin
e/about_pathology___laboratory_medicine/divisions/anatomic_pathology/autopsy_pathology.ht
ml

Partial and Complete Autopsies


When a loved one passes there is a lot of confusion. Sometimes you may already know why a
loved one passed and the cause and circumstances surrounding the death is clear, still, specific
questions about an illness may remain. For instance you may have concerns about genetic
diseases, inheritable diseases, types of cancer, neurological diseases and conditions which affect
the health of the whole family. An autopsy can help you discover this information. If you are not
certain if a partial or complete autopsy is the right choice, we can help guide you through the
decision with expert knowledge and straightforward information.
Partial Autopsy Options
Specific Organ or Tissue Autopsy
When the main concern is limited specifically to one organ or tissue disease process, we can
focus the examination to that specific tissue.
Cardiovascular Autopsy
If your concern surrounds heart and lung issues only, this may be an appropriate option.

Tumor Tissue Examination


We can remove and examine tumor in order to provide a complete diagnosis of the exact disease.
Sumber

: http://regional-pathology.com/partialandcomplete/

PARTIAL AUTOPSY
What is done: Partial autopsies consist of a complete evaluation of

the outside of the body

any specific area or areas of the body the family requests

Why choose a partial autopsy: A partial autopsy helps when the family has specific
requests or wishes to evaluate a specific area. For example, you can request a chest
only or brain only autopsy; or an evaluation of a specific organ.
See which of these questions fit for you:
Was there a heart attack?
Was there asbestosis?
Was there Alzheimers disease?
Was the foot infected?
Was there liver disease?
My loved one complained of chest pain just before he died. What caused that?
If you have single questions such as these, a partial autopsy may be right for you. If
you have more than one question, you may want to consider complete autopsy.
Also, please note, that a partial autopsy cannot definitely determine the cause of
death. Only a complete autopsy can definitively determine the cause of the death.

Was there a heart attack?


If you just need to know if your loved one had a heart attack, you may request a chest
only autopsy to evaluate the heart. The chest only autopsy will evaluate the organs
of the chest: the heart, blood vessel of the chest, and lungs. This will tell you if there
was a serious problem in the heart (for example, heart attack) or lungs (for example,
clot to the lungs). But a partial autopsy will not be able to definitively determine the
cause of death. This is because your loved may have had serious heart disease, but
could have died from a stroke in the brain. You would never know unless you also
looked in the brain. A partial autopsy (chest only) could answer certain questions, but
could not give you a definite cause of death.

Was there asbestosis?


Asbestosis affects the lungs. If this is your question, you may wish to request a chest
only autopsy. This way the lungs can be evaluated. You may not be interested in (or
already know) the cause of death. In this case, requesting a chest only autopsy may
be a good fit for you.

Was there Alzheimers disease?


If you have a question about Alzheimers disease and have no other medical questions,
a brain only autopsy may be a fit for you. The brain only autopsy will assess for
Alzheimers disease as well as strokes and some other diseases of the brain. A brain
only autopsy will not provide you with the cause of death just an evaluation of the
brain.

Was the foot infected? Was there liver disease?


Any area of the body can be evaluated on the outside or inside of the body. If you
have a specific question (for example, about a foot ulcer; or a back surgery; or hand

surgery; or liver disease; and so on) you can request that this specific area be
assessed. Please be aware that such an assessment will not provide the cause of
death, but just an evaluation of the one area you request.

My loved one complained of chest pain. What caused this?


Sometimes you may have information that gives you some idea what caused the
death. This may be because you were with the loved one when he or she died; or
because you are aware of the medical history. Especially if you are not thinking of
litigation, it may be that a partial autopsy will help satisfy your need. For example, if
your loved one had chest pain and there was a history of heart disease, you may have a
strong suspicion of a heart attack. A partial autopsy (chest only) may be enough for
you. But again, please be aware, that only a complete autopsy can give a cause of
death. Talk to the Autopsy Center about your concerns.
Sumber

: http://autopsychicago.com/services/partial-autopsy/

Half autopsies carried out are unnecessary, leading


pathologist says
AN East End funeral director has welcomed a report which suggests more than half of autopsies
carried out are unnecessary and says its proposals will help grieving Muslims.
Leading pathologist Derrick Pounders report says a less invasive examination could be used in
60 per cent of cases, saving money and allowing a quicker burial.
The current system is a particular problem for Muslims because Islam states the dead should be
buried as soon as possible.
Gulam Taslim runs Haji Taslim Funerals, which holds about 15 services a week, at
Whitechapels East London Mosque.

He said: Its traumatic when a family has to wait days to bury the body of their loved one.
Sometimes we have to bury parts of the body twice as the coroners analysis can take up to two
weeks. Its a double whammy for the family.
This report has showed that most of the post mortems are unnecessary. Logic doesnt come into
it.
In England, more than a fifth of deaths are referred to the coroner a number the report argues is
too high and too costly.
Professor Pounder based his recommendations on the Scottish system, which favours less
invasive examinations in the majority of cases.
He said there is not enough cash and expertise to make sure autopsies are carried out properly
and also that many are not needed, causing families extra pain.
The professor, whose findings were published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine,
explained: We need to be much more thoughtful in selecting which deaths we autopsy.
We simply do not have the people to perform well such large numbers. The inevitable result is a
lowering of autopsy standards and a false sense of security that we have properly investigated the
death.
Other methods, like assessing external injuries and making small incisions to get blood for
toxicology reports were suggested.
Families rights and freedom of religious practice should be balanced against the need to
investigate the death, the expert added.
The Coroners Society of England and Wales said there is not currently enough research into
whether the recommendations are reliable.
It added it would welcome a reduction in the numbers of autopsies as long as the methods could
be shown to be accurate and comply with current rules.

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