This is a phase well known to those who devour detective series, whether literary or television: when the cause of death is unknown, forensic doctors can carry out a complete or partial autopsy. It is now possible for them to use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computed tomography (CT-scan) to help them see in depth and reveal secrets from certain bodies.
These technologies may be recent, but the very principle of autopsy actually dates back several thousand years ago, indicates Discover Magazine, which first of all recalls the difference between medico-legal autopsy and anatomical dissection. This one “lies in the aim pursued”explains Victor Weedn, former president of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. “Anatomical dissection is intended for research. The forensic autopsy aims to determine the cause of death.”
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For centuries, anatomical dissections were controversial in Europe and the United States: medical students often raided freshly dug graves to study cadavers. In contrast, forensic autopsies were only performed when the reason for death was suspicious or unknown. This practice dates back several millennia. “People have been really interested in what kills who since the first societies”comments Victor Weedn.
Already in ancient Egypt
There are records of animal autopsies dating back to ancient Egypt, 4000 BCE. In the same region, human autopsies were probably carried out from 3000 BC, and were in fact as much anatomical dissection as medico-legal procedures.
Closer to us, Roman doctors would have carried out an autopsy in 44 BCE. After the death of Julius Caesar, assassinated in the Senate, they studied the body even though the origins of the death were in no doubt: the emperor had been stabbed in front of witnesses on numerous occasions. Victor Weedn confirms: “A doctor examined him and said that one of the thirty-two stab wounds was fatal.”
Although deaths were investigated in ancient times, there was a lack of uniformity in how cases were approached and evidence handled. This is why in the 13th centurye century, Chinese physician Song Ci wrote a guide to inform death investigators of the procedures to follow. This book is considered the first guide to forensic medicine. “It explains how to determine if a body submerged in water died by suicide or drowning”summarizes the expert.
In Europe, however, the Catholic Church outlawed the practice until the 1500s, equating it with a form of desecration. After this ban was lifted, forensic medicine specialists were then able to advance the process of investigating suspicious illnesses and deaths. And in the 19the century, autopsy was considered a discipline in its own right.
In the United States, the state of Maryland was the first to adopt (in 1860) a law requiring the presence of a qualified doctor during investigations following a suspicious death. Gradually, some states implemented a medico-legal system so that autopsies were carried out by a qualified forensic pathologist – which had not always been the case until then.
It must be said that for a long time, autopsies were carried out by general practitioners. “There were no forensic pathologists per se, it was just doctors who did the work”explains Victor Weedn. The forensic field has fortunately evolved to offer specific training, which allows autopsies to be carried out in the most efficient and body-friendly way possible.
