ABSTRACT
The medicolegal evaluation of bodies recovered from fluid environments, commonly water, must take into account several possibilities as to how a body became submerged, starting from the point of immersion, and whether or not the immersion/submersion event contributed to or caused the death. Retention of additional small portions of organs and bone is routine. This is done should there later arise a need to submit additional sections for microscopic examination to further clarify or characterize a pathological process seen in the original tissue sections. Like in any death of a fetus or infant that has not occurred in the presence of or with the assistance of medical personnel, especially one that is found submerged in confined, water-filled locations such as the toilet or bathtub, efforts to first determine live birth versus stillbirth along with corroboration of maternal and other witness statements are needed. Postmortem Computed Tomography has been shown to be a helpful adjunct to the lung float test.
