EXERCISE 16.4 ORDERING: PERFORMING A NECROPSY
Instructions: To perform a complete necropsy, 36 steps must be followed that can be grouped into the following categories:
1. Examination of external and superficial structures
2. Examination of the body cavities
3. Examination of the head and CNS
4. Examination of the thoracic viscera
5. Examination of the abdominal viscera
6. Final steps
Within each category, place the steps of performing a complete necropsy in the proper order from first to last by placing the appropriate number (1, 2, 3, etc.) in the space provided.
3. Examination of the head and CNS (steps 14 through 19)
A. Transect the cranial nerves, and remove brain and the pituitary gland.
B. Cut the spinal cord and vertebral column at atlantooccipital joint.
C. Section the head longitudinally and examine nasal and oral cavities.
D. Cut the calvaria and remove the caudal-dorsal portion of the calvaria and dorsal meninges.
E. Open the tympanic bullae.
F. Remove skin and muscle from calvaria.
4. Examination of the thoracic viscera (steps 20 through 24)
A. Section the lungs, saving one section from each lobe.
B. Remove the tongue, tonsils, esophagus, trachea, lungs, heart, and thoracic aorta as a unit.
C. Serially section the tongue.
D. Examine, weigh, and collect sections of the heart.
E. Open the esophagus and trachea.