Abstract: Since first application of computed tomography(CT) in postmortem examination in 1990, investigators have been discussing the value and advantage of CT in full-body examination in cadaver. CT examination before autopsy is able to provide not only the informations to guide the autopsy, but also the significant findings to analysis the causes of death, which may be not fount in autopsy. This review focuses on the value of CT in analysis of the death causes, injury manners, and personal identifications in postmortem examination as well as its development in the field of forensic medicine. It is our belief that CT in combination with other newly developed technologies will make more contribution to forensic medicine in the future.

Key words: forensic pathology, tomography, X-ray computer, review[publication type], autopsy