In addition, medical education no longer emphasizes the autopsy. Most medical students have not seen an autopsy by the time they graduate. Physicians that never have attended an autopsy are less likely to recognize its benefits. It is clear that modern technology does not provide all the answers. The advantages of the autopsy are numerous.
Autopsies help determine the efficacy of drug therapy and surgical techniques.
They provide comfort to families in knowing the cause of death. They discover and define new diseases and environmental hazards. Information obtained from autopsies is essential in establishing valid mortality statistics. These vital statistics are compiled from hospital death certificates. Given the significant discrepancies between pre- and postmortem diagnoses and the current low autopsy rate there is great concern among many public health officials regarding the reliability of our national mortality statistics.