Virtopsy – Radiology in Forensic Medicine

During the last few years, modern cross-sectional imaging techniques have pioneered forensic medicine. Magnetic resonance imaging and especially multislice computed tomography are becoming increasingly implemented into post-mortem examinations. These non-invasive techniques can augment and even partially replace a traditional autopsy. Beside the radiological imaging techniques, the methods of three-dimensional surface scanning and photogrammetry are used for the documentation of the external findings of the body. To realize the goal of a minimal-invasive autopsy, other tools like post-mortem biopsy and post-mortem angiography have been developed. In analogy to the clinical use of biopsy and angiography these techniques will permit post-mortem tissue sampling for further analyses and enable post-mortem examinations of the vascular system. With the use of these methods, a minimally invasive, objective and investigator-independent documentation of forensic cases can be realized to reach quality improvements in forensic pathological investigations.