The status of autopsy in France

Five main varieties of autopsies can be distinguished in France : the foren sic pathology autopsy, medical and scientific autopsies, the ( gift of corp se to the University), and the sanitary autopsy. The main rules and the sho rtcomings of French regulations ant its implementation are recalled. The di sappearance of medical and scientific autopsies is of concern for three rea sons : in some cases, the predictive value of clinical diagnosis is still p oor and the proportion of unexpected findings that may have modified the pa tient therapy (20/25%) has remained unchanged for many years; autopsy is an important piece of the health watch, i.e. of public welfare; the modern po st-genomic research needs tissue samples that often cannot be obtained by o ther means for ethical reasons. Numerous patients associations campain for making easier the gift of organs for research purpose. The prerequisites fo r a renewing of autopsy, the modifications of regulations and practices tha t are required, the procedures to explain its importance in the hospital, a mong medical doctors and care givers, and in the society are considered.