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Autopsy Pathology

Autopsy services include post-mortem examination on hospitalized adult patients performed with the consent of next-of-kin or legal guardian, to clarify the cause of death for the benefit of family and attending physicians.

The Eastern Ontario Regional Forensic Pathology Unit opened in 1994, with a mandate to perform adult medicolegal autopsies under a coroner's warrant. As well as providing information for the next-of- kin, forensic autopsies allow the Coroner's Office to make important decisions as to the manner of death.

In conjunction with results of other forensic scientific investigations such as toxicology, DNA profiling and firearms/ballistics examinations, the autopsy plays a vital role in the judicial process, whether it be an inquest to address public safety concerns or a criminal trial to determine guilt or innocence in deaths not due to natural causes.