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An autopsy is preformed to determine a cause of death. When someone in good physical health suddenly dies, the autopsy will determine the reason for death. The autopsy is performed by a medical examiner or a coroner. The family to the deceased may request an examination by a source other than the hospital or police recommendations. The family hires an examiner on their own to request an independent autopsy.

Death occurs and when it does it is listed under one of five categories. First is natural cause which could be due to age or disease or other ‘expected’ reason. Accidental is unexpected such as being hit by a car, however, it was no fault of the driver or the victim. Dying at the hands of someone else such as being shot, is homicide. When a person succeeds in ending their own life it is categorized as suicide. When someone dies for reasons outside of one of the mention categories it is considered undetermined.

Autopsies are categorized as forensic or clinical. When an attending physician or other hospital personal requests an examination it is referred to as clinical. The discovered information can be used to give family members a firmer grasp on the cause of death or the information can be used in educational purposes. A forensic autopsy is ordered as part of a police investigation to determine various bits of information.

An autopsy can be performed as either a full or partial one. The full is when the organs and brain are examined and a partial is when one or the other is examined. For example, when someone is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, there may be a partial autopsy on their brain to conclude if there is something that can be used in future diagnoses.

There at situations when a death is assumed to be from one cause but an autopsy determines a different cause. For example, if someone dies from a gunshot, the first thought for many would be they were shot by someone else. An autopsy would be able to determine if this was the case of if the individual committed suicide.

If a person is admitted into a hospital and dies while in their care, but the death is not in relation to the reason for their admittance. Family members considering a lawsuit or negligence would request an examination to determine the cause of death.

In cases where the medical facility is under suspicion, family members may contact legal counsel to file a lawsuit against the hospital or particular staff. The attorney would request an examination of the body from an outside source.

When a third party is requested, a pathologist who does independent autopsies will be hired by the family. This is to ensure the information obtained from the autopsy will not be biased in any way. The results are given to the family and the attorney for help in deciding if the action suit should continue.

Learn more about independent autopsy. Stop by Roy Bouldin’s site where you can find out all about autopsies and what it can do for you.