THE METHOD OF MAKING POST-MORTEM EXAMINATIONS. 39 



in a clean, sealed, and labelled bottle, so that this may be tested by the 

 chemist and be proven to be free from the poison. It is better in all 

 cases, however, to avoid, if possible, the use of alcohol. In all autop- 

 sies which may have medico-legal importance full notes should be taken 

 by an assistant as the operation proceeds, carefully read over immediately 

 afterward and dated, and kept by the operator for future reference. 

 The labelling and disposition of the jars should be recorded in the notes. 

 The specimens should not for a moment be out of the sight of the oper- 

 ator until they are placed under lock and key and seal, or are delivered 

 to some authorized person, so that there may be no question of their 

 identity should the case come into court. 



Examination of the Bodies of New-born Children. 1 



In examining the bodies of new-born children, we may have to determine, besides 

 the ordinary lesions of disease, the age of the child, whether it was born alive, how long 

 it has been dead, what was the cause of death. 



SIZE, AGE, AND CHARACTERS OF THE NEW-BORN CHILD. The fresh corpse of a new- 

 born child at term no longer resembles that of the immature fetus. The skin is firm 

 and pale, like that of an adult. The lanugo has disappeared except on the shoulders. 

 In the majority of cases the hair on the head is 1.5 to 2 cm. long. The great fontanelle 

 is, in the average, 2 to 3 cm. long. As determined by an analysis of 661 cases, the aver- 

 age length is 50 cm. the weight 3,256 grams. The nails are hard and reach to the tips 

 of the fingers, but not to those of the toes. The cartilages of the ears and nose are hard. 

 The labia are more nearly closed. An ossification centre in the lower epiphysis of the 

 femur should be sought for, as its presence is one of the most reliable signs of the ma- 

 turity of the foetus. If it is absent, the foetus is, as a rule, not more than thirty-seven 

 weeks old ; but in rare cases it may be absent at term. A centre of ossification 1 mm. 

 in diameter indicates an age of 37 to 38 weeks, if the child was born dead or died soon 

 after birth. Rarely it is no larger than this at term. A diameter, at birth, of 1.5 to 9 

 mm. indicates an age of 40 weeks. A diameter of more than 9 mm. indicates, as a rule, 

 that the child has lived some time after its birth ; a less diameter than 7 mm., however, 

 does not prove the contrary. 



Twenty-four hours after the birth of the child the skin is firmer and paler. The um- 

 bilical cord is somewhat shrivelled, although still soft and bluish in color. From the 

 second to the third day the skin has a yellowish tinge and the cuticle sometimes appears 

 cracked. The umbilical cord is brown and dry. From the third to the fourth day the 

 skin is yellower, and the cuticle is apt to separate from the skin. The umbilical cord 

 is of a brownish-red color, flattened, semi-transparent, and twisted. The skin around 

 its insertion is red and congested. 



GENERAL INSPECTION. The head should be examined for the marks of injuries. 

 Very commonly some portion of the scalp will be found swollen and infiltrated with 

 blood and serum. This may be the caput succedaneum formed during delivery. The 

 mouth and nose should be examined for the presence of foreign bodies which might 

 have caused suffocation. 



The neck should be examined for marks of strangulation. The umbilical cord may 

 be twisted around the child's neck and strangle it. The mark left by the cord is usu- 

 ally continuous, broad, not excoriated, sometimes accompanied by ecchymoses in the 

 skin. 



The surface of the body should be examined for the presence of vernix caseosa, 



1 The human embryo, according to the estimate of His, measures in length approxi 

 mately at 4 weeks from 7-8 mm. ; at 5 weeks 13 mm. ; at the end of the second month 

 25-28 mm. Shrdder estimates the approximate length of the foetus at later lunar 

 months as follows: 3rd, 70-90 mm. ; 4th, 100-170 mm. ; 5th, 180-270 mm. ; 6th, 280-340 

 mm. ; 7th, 350-380 mm. ; 8th, 425 mm. ; 9th, 467 mm. ; 10th 490-500 mm. Consult for 

 further data McMurrich, The Development of the Human Body, 1903, p. 108. Bibl. 



