History of Autopsies

First real dissection for study of diseases

300 BCE

Alexandrian physicians, Herophilus and Erasistratus, were the first to be curious about the human body enough to cut it open to see how it worked.

First findind in causes of death

100 BCE

Greek physician Galen of Pergamum was the first to do a dissection of the body and correlate the symptoms of the patient to the diseased area in the body

First legal autopsy

Mar 21, 1302

The legal autopsy, wherein the death was investigated to determine presence of “fault,” is said to have been one requested by a magistrate in Bologna

Autopsy Founder

May 15, 1761

Giovanni Morgagni was the founder of the modern autopsy. He written a book about the over 700 autopsies he did.

British Medical Law

Apr 12, 1820

British law stated only executed criminals could be autopsied. The anatomy classes started to fill up but not enough corpses to study so they started murdering people and sold the bodies to the professors.

Autopsies become normal(ish)

Apr 12, 1854

Karl Rokitansky used almost every body to do an autopsy on. Did not care about the patients history. Disliked microscopes

Standards for Autopsies

Apr 11, 1880

Rudolf Virchow he wrote the standards that are still used today.

CT Scan Creation

Apr 11, 1972

British engineer Godfrey Hounsfield created the CT scan and was later given a nobel prize. It was intented to learn more about the anatomy.

Toxicology tests are effective

Apr 12, 1987

An Ohio pathologist discovers the cause of death during the autopsy to be cyanide through toxicology tests

Autopsies Now

Apr 12, 2011

Autopsies today have helped doctors diagnose diseases and find new ones. Not only to find cause and effects of some products like smoking and lung cancer.