Autopsy

Last updated: 01 January 2008

What is an autopsy?

An autopsy (also called a post mortem examination) is a step-by-step inspection of the outside of the body and of the internal organs by a doctor called a pathologist, who is specially trained in this type of work.

The autopsy is carried out in a mortuary in a respectful manner. Once the autopsy is completed, the cuts are carefully closed but can be seen if the body is uncovered.

An autopsy can give valuable information about the illness and treatment. It may also help families and doctors to better understand the reason for illness and death.

What autopsies are performed in Australia?

There are two reasons for an autopsy in Australia.

Hospital autopsy
The family may ask the doctor to arrange for an autopsy to be performed, or a doctor may ask the family for permission to carry out an autopsy.
A hospital autopsy cannot be performed without the permission of the family or the person before they died. An autopsy can give valuable information and may also help families and doctors to better understand the reason for illness and death.

Coronial autopsy
Some deaths (e.g. where the cause of death is unknown or where the person has died of unnatural causes such as an accident or suicide) must be reported to the Coroner. The Coroner decides whether an autopsy is needed. The permission of the next of kin is not required for a coronial autopsy.

What human organs or tissues might have been kept after an autopsy?
Sometimes some human tissues and organs require special tests and the doctor may need to keep whole organs for a more detailed examination. In other autopsies, organs may have been kept for teaching or research purposes. Whilst many of these would have since been destroyed, some still remain and may be able to be traced.

Ashed bone samples from some people who had an autopsy from the late 1950s to the late 1970s were used in a program looking at the effects of nuclear testing by measuring a substance called Strontium 90. Most of these samples were used up in the testing. However some samples still exist.

Would families have known that human tissue was retained in the past?
If the family gave consent for a hospital autopsy, some families may not have fully understood that whole organs or bone samples may have been removed and kept for further examination or for valuable teaching purposes.

In Coronial autopsies, the permission of the family is not required and they may not have known that tissue and or bone samples had been removed and kept.

Where can I get further information?

To obtain further information about a past autopsy in NSW, you will need to be an immediate family member of the person who had an autopsy, or a person authorised by an immediate family member acting on their behalf. The law regarding disclosure of information may be different in other Australian states and territories.

An immediate family member is a person who has one of the following relationships with the deceased person:

• spouse
• defacto partner
• mother
• father
• son
• daughter
• brother
• sister

If you have an inquiry about a past autopsy of a family member, please contact Malynda Flarey on (02) 9391 9524 or Emily Watson on (02) 9391 9450, Clinical Policy, NSW Health.