Postmortem changes
These are the natural changes in a dead body according to the span of time. The dead bodies are affected by so many factors like environmental and other external and internal conditions in the body.
Changes
A. Immediate Changes
- Stoppage of respiration
- Stoppage of heart function
- Stoppage of brain
B. Early Changes
- Skin: it become pale, dry with loss of elasticity
- Eyes: it becomes fixed, having dilated pupils, decrease in pressure with haziness in eye globe or sclera
- Muscle: it is relaxed for some hours (primary relaxation). RIGOR MORTIS- muscle starts to become stiff after a few hours to a few days. First 12-14 hours there are developing rigor. Second 12-14 hours there is persisting rigor. Third 12-14 hours there is disappearing rigor.
- HYPOSTASIS (LIVER MORTIS): It is a color change on the skin of dependent parts of the body because of settled blood due to gravity. It starts to appear after hours of death. Within 10-12 hours the stains fade with application of pressure and after that time there is no color change. And areas where there is pressure by contact are free from patches and it looks like a pale area.
- Cooling of the body: after 2 hours of death the temperature starts to decline gradually and it might be equal with environmental temperature after 12-15 hours.
C. Late Changes:
- Decomposition: It is the process of decaying of organic material due to putrefaction, autolysis and microbial invasion. The signs of decomposition are: greenish to blackish coloration, bloating of the body, frothy fluid from nose and mouth, distended genitals due to gas collection, maggot invasion and so on.
- Semi Skeletonization: some parts of the body may skeletonize and others may remain dried and decomposed or mummified.
- Mummification: a modified process of putrefaction, where the water content in the body gets evaporated
- Adipocere formation: fatty part of the body may not decompose and preserves with no decaying
Autopsy in Decomposed Body
- All the signs of decomposition must be documented during
- external examination
- External examination as in all non decomposed bodies
- Internal examination must be done as in all bodies
- Collection of samples when necessary
- Limitations: There may be disappearances of superficial injuries and additional colors due to decomposition
Basis for Time Since Death: it is more or less a guess work. Rigor mortis, hypostasis, and some changes in the eye are more helpful. Food in the stomach and intestine is more reliable.
Source: -
Dr. Harihar Wasti's lecture at Kathmandu School of Law, 2024
Dr. k.S. Narayan Reddy & O.P. Murty, ‘The essentials of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology’, The Health Science Publishers, 2017
Dr. Ramesh Parajuli, ‘Forensic Jurisprudence’, Pairavi Book House, 2017
