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Veterinary Medicine vocabulary · Diagnostics and Laboratory Tests

Post-mortem examination

Meaning in veterinary medicine, with examples

/ˌpəʊst ˈmɔːtəm ɪɡˌzæmɪˈneɪʃən/nounCommon term

In veterinary medicine, post-mortem examination means: A detailed examination of an animal's body after death to find out why it died or what diseases it had. In the US it is usually called a necropsy.

In Turkish: nekropsi, ölüm sonrası muayene, otopsi

How it is used

Shortened to PM or post-mortem. Vets carry out a PM on the farm or send the body to a laboratory, and take samples for histopathology. Autopsy is the word in human medicine, and vets usually avoid it for animals.

Example sentences

  1. We'll do a post-mortem examination on the dead calf to see if it was pneumonia.

  2. The insurance company asked for a post-mortem examination before paying the claim.

Common collocations

  • carry out a post-mortem examination
  • post-mortem findings
  • post-mortem report
  • send for post-mortem examination
  • biopsyTaking a small piece of tissue from a living animal so that it can be examined under a microscope, or the tissue sample itself.
  • diagnosisThe identification of the disease or problem that is causing an animal's clinical signs, based on the history, the examination and test results.
  • notifiable diseaseA disease that, by law, must be reported to the government veterinary authorities as soon as it is suspected, even before it is confirmed.

More terms: Diagnostics and Laboratory Tests

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.