Quantifying the loss of pulmonary fluid from dissecting the lung at post-mortem

Weighing of organs is a standard requirement in post-mortem examination. Ideally, the lungs should be weighed intact to prevent pulmonary fluids loss. However, there are instances where the lungs are weighted fully or partially dissected. Although suggested to be 'appreciable', the amount of pulmonary fluid loss from dissecting the lung is not quantified. To quantify the amount of pulmonary fluid loss from dissecting the lung at post-mortem, this study compared 40 pairs of lungs weighed intact and dissected using two different dissection methods. The result of our study showed that the amount of pulmonary fluid loss may vary from different dissection methods and correlates positively (weakly to moderately) with intact lung weight. However, the average pulmonary fluid loss from dissection was <20 g (<3% of the intact lung weight) and was considered neither clinically significant nor 'appreciable'.

Automated summary

This study aimed to quantify the amount of pulmonary fluid loss from dissecting the lung at post-mortem. The results showed that the amount of pulmonary fluid loss may vary depending on the dissection method and weakly to moderately correlates with intact lung weight. However, the overall pulmonary fluid loss was considered clinically insignificant and not appreciable.