Medical Certification of

Cause of Death

Dr. Sanjaya Hulathduwa

MBBS, DLM, MD, DMJ(Path)Lond. DMJ(Clin)Lond. Dip.Crim,
MFFLM(UK), L.LB
Senior Lecturer, Department of Forensic Medicine
Faculty of Medical Sciences
University of Sri Jayawardenepure
• Recommendation of World Health
Organization, Expert Committee on Health
Statistics
Reason for certification of the cause of death

▪ Contribution to the legal record of the death,

Insurance, Inheritance of property etc.

▪ Source of mortality Statistics-for future health

care policy planning

▪ Preventive aspect for relatives of the deceased

Part I
• The disease or condition leading directly to
death. This should not be the mode of dying
(mechanism) but the disease, injury or
complication which caused death.
Part II
• All other diseases or conditions believed to
have unfavorably influenced the course of
morbid process and thus contributed to the
fatal outcome, but which were not related to
the disease or condition directly causing
death.
• In the order of significance.
• Interval between the onset and death
Right side space
• According to the International Classification of
Diseases (ICD)
Infections
• Tuberculous meningitis
• Dengue haemorrhagic fever
• Sub acute bacterial endocarditis
Neoplasm
• Acute lymphocytic leukaemia
• Disseminated carcinoma of prostate
• Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Cardio vascular system
Acute rheumatic pericarditis
• Respiratory system
Acute severe asthma
• Gastro intestinal system
Crohn’s disease
I a. Myocardial infarction
b. Coronary thrombosis
c. Coronary atherosclerosis
II Hypertension
NIDDM
I a. Stroke/Cerebro-vascular Accident
b. Cerebral haemorrhage
c. Hypertension
II NIDDM
I a. Peritonitis
b. Perforation of duodenal ulcer

II Carcinoma of the breast

I a. Hypostatic pneumonia
b. Immobilization
c. Fracture of femur
II NIDDM
I a. Congestive cardiac failure
b. Cardiac hypertrophy
c. Malignant hypertension
II NIDDM
I a. Cerebral laceration
b. Blunt impact to head
c. Fall from height
I a Septiceamia
b Cellulites of leg
c Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus

II Hypertension
• Thank you.