How is an autopsy performed?

First comes the external exam, to find bodily trauma, bites, scratches, burns, cuts, needle marks, head trauma, etc.

Second, the body gets cut open and toxicology (bodily fluids) are taken, and even tissues of specific body parts, as well as cutting open the head and examining the brain and taking brain tissue.

It can take a few weeks for toxicology and microscopic slides to come back to be checked, and sometimes, additional help from other experts may be needed to help determine the cause of death.