Abstract
The brains of fetuses should be removed using the same procedure as for newborns. Examination of the fetal brain should be preceded by an estimation of the gestational age based primarily on a comparison of body mass and length at autopsy with normal values (cf. Chap. 20). When examining the brain itself factors other than brain mass should be considered for comparison with a pathological state: the pattern of sulcation, synaptogenesis, as well as the state of myelination and of the neuronal migration process. The development of olfactory bulbs, optic nerves, pituitary stalk, and cranial nerve roots is recorded, and the mass and occipital-frontal length of each hemisphere and its biparietal width are measured. Because of the friability and deformability of the fetal brain, these measurements are best obtained while the brain is floating in either fixative or water.
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(2006). Fetal Neuropathology. In: Forensic Neuropathology and Associated Neurology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-28995-X_21
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-28995-X_21
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