Application of an autopsy report specifically designed for cardiovascular diseases

After modifying the format and content of the autopsy report traditionally used at the Instituto Nacional de Cardiología of México, Tlalpan, we present the results of the new, revised autopsy protocol here. The new autopsy protocol (model report) was designed as a "fixed format" to describe the cardiovascular diseases observed at our institution, thus pretending to collect more and better data, providing useful information, and contributing to better clinicopathologic correlations. The comparison between the model and traditional reports demonstrated an improvement in the autopsy data collection system--achieving better clinicopathologic correlations of the main disease and the cause of death, and identifying morphologic alterations that would explain it in more cases. The model report was also considered more accessible and useful since it permitted the answering of more questions raised by clinicians.