# 986 What do you know about autopsy?

Here are some facts:

The definition of Autopsy means "see for yourself".

When a loved one dies, a family can ask the hospital to perform an autopsy, and the service is free. No hospital should ever charge for an autopsy on a patient who was treated there. There have been a couple of cases in which a hospital, already concerned about possible liability, discouraged families from requesting an autopsy by telling them there was a fee. (Most recently, a Louisiana hospital listed a charge of $2000 plus transportation.) The idea of charging a family for an autopsy is so strongly opposed to the spirit of the profession that if you are told there is a charge, I would suggest you contact your attorney.

Most religions allow autopsy.

There should not be a problem with an open-casket funeral afterwards. This is true even if the brain has been removed and the dead person is bald. The pillow will conceal the marks.

It does not matter much whether the body has been embalmed first.

During an autopsy, the top of the skull is removed, and the brain is very carefully cut free of its attachments from inside the skull.

When the internal organs, have been examined, the pathologist may return all but the portions they have saved to the body cavity. Or the organs may be cremated without being returned. The appropriate laws, and the wishes of the family, are obeyed.