Of corpses and dead bodies

I never knew that medical doctors needed to be equipped with the knowledge of performing an autopsy or a post-mortem examination.

I just came to know about it not too long ago when I was introduced to forensic medicine. Autopsies are basically done to determine the cause or nature of death, identify a dead body, estimate the time of death and so on. The forensic department can be likened to a slaughterhouse. Corpses are cut open. Organs, including the brain and heart, are sliced in to pieces. And there’s blood everywhere.

I still vividly remember the very first autopsy I observed months ago. The horrendous look of the partially decomposed remains discovered couples of days after the man died was etched in my mind for some time. Putrefaction (liquefaction of soft tissues) had occurred. Skin peeling and discoloration were present. There was gross gaseous distension of the face, abdomen and scrotum. What greeted my eyes was far more hideous than the nicely preserved cadavers I saw during my anatomy lectures in 1st year.

In addition, the sight of maggots crawling all over the body surface of the corpse and greedily devouring the flesh sent shivers down my spine. Hundreds of them. As soon as the unbearably disgusting stench assaulted my nostrils, I immediately knew the amount of patience being a forensic pathologist would entail. It’s the most unpleasant smell I’ve ever smelt. 20 times worse than that of a dead cat left unattended for 5 days.

When I first met Dr JH, I thought she’s a physician. Perhaps a pharmacist. Or a doctor in a specialty which doesn’t involve a lot of blood. She always puts on the smile an unemployed housewife married to a rich man would. And I was really taken aback when I later learnt that she’s actually a renowned forensic pathologist with a rather formidable qualification that’d be teaching us forensic medicine.

I guess I’m fine with dealing dead bodies. Yet, it certainly is an option I’ll never take into consideration if I ever have the opportunity to specialize in the distant future.