A new born infant is found dead, abandoned by the road. The police need to know whether the infant was born dead or alive. An autopsy reveals the infant was dead at birth. How could the medical examiner determine this?
1 Answer
Apr 28, 2018
Here's what I think.
Explanation:
Medical examiners consider many different pieces of evidence.
However, one important procedure is the hydrostatic test.
An infant who was dead at birth has a lung density of
Thus fetal lungs sink in water, and those that have breathed, float.
The medical examiner tests both lungs and then cuts them into 12 to 15 pieces.
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If all the cut pieces float, the infant must have breathed for some time.
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If some pieces float and some sink, the infant breathed for a short time but ineffectively. Nevertheless, this is evidence of live birth.
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If all the pieces sink, the infant never breathed and was dead at birth.
