Preautopsy MR imaging

There are no prospective data on the role of MR imaging in detecting abnormalities in cadavers. The authors prospectively studied six cadavers with a 0.15-T resistive magnet. All gross abnormalities greater than 1 cm detected at autopsy were seen with MR imaging, except for a pulmonary embolus and a gut malformation. MR imaging was superior to autopsy in detecting pleural effusion (four cases), pneumothorax (three cases), pericardial effusion (two cases), and ascites, lung collapse, pneumoperitoneum, subcutaneous emphysema, and sinusitis (one case each). The authors conclude that MR imaging may be useful (1) in complementing autopsy findings, (2) in limiting autopsy to certain areas, and (3) in confirming the cause of death if autopsy permission is denied