Virtual Autopsies Provide New Insights into Death
A new method of examining cause of death, which combines images from powerful computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) together with surface scans of corpses, is being developed and used by Swiss forensic scientists. The idea of this new method is draws on a collaborative effort between radiologists and forensic scientists, where autopsies can be planned more effectively after examining abnormalities present in the combined CT, MRI, and surface scans. According to specialist Wichmann of the Hamburg university hospital, relatives of the deceased often do not allow an autopsy to be performed because they do not want the body of their family member to be cut open. Virtual autopsies relieve these concerns and have also allowed Swiss pioneers to circumvent an otherwise excessively messy situation.
Pictured left: How a virtual autopsy is conducted. Courtesy of Universität Zürich Institut für Rechtsmedizin
Date of Article: January 6th, 2013
[Abstract by Mark Lombard, ForensIQ Intern, January 8th, 2013]
Citation
Thadeusz, F. Forensic Magazine. Virtual Autopsies Provide New Insights into Death | Forensic Magazine. Retrieved January 8, 2013, from http://www.forensicmag.com/news/virtual-autopsies-provide-new-insights-death?et_cid=3027348&et_rid=515363537&linkid=http%3a%2f%2fwww.forensicmag.com%2fnews%2fvirtual-autopsies-provide-new-insights-death
