Eli5: How do morticians tell if someone died from a blood clot?

Question

My neighbour died when several blood clots travelled to his heart and caused a massive heart attack.

How can mortitions tell this during an autopsy?

In: 13

Answer 1

Coroner and pathologist do autopsy. They are assisted by a pathology technician that usually do the dissection . As for the clot, a clot in your arteries that is formed ante mortem (before your death) and can very well be the cause of your death is sticking to the arteries wall. A clot that is form post mortem, after the death will be easily movable. During an autopsy, we carefully check the coronary and pulmonary arteries that are the most common place that a clot will form causing death.

I’m a pathology tech.