CONCORDANCE BETWEEN CLINICAL AND POSTMORT EM DIAGNOSES IN A CLINICAL HOSPITAL

Background: Lately, autopsies are performed less frequently in hospita ls, despite their importance as a diagnostic tool. Aim: To study the c oncordance between clinical diagnosis and postmortem study in patients that died in a teaching hospital. Material and methods: Autopsy findi ngs in 57 patients (aged 16 to 85 years old, 28 female) that died at a University hospital were analyzed. Clinical diagnoses were compared w ith those of the postmortem examination and the degree of concordance between both diagnoses was calculated. Results: Seven major omissions (12.3%) whose knowledge could have changed the clinical course of pati ents, were detected. These omissions occurred in patients with complex diseases or due to limitations of diagnostic procedures. Also, seven omissions found in severely ill patients, whose knowledge would not ch ange the patient's evolution, were also detected. Conclusions: Autopsy still is a valuable tool to assess the quality of care for patients t hat die during their hospitalization.