If baby is stillborn, should there be an autopsy?

Stillborn: It depends on the parents and dr. Sometimes they know the cause of death, they do autopsy to find out the anomally that cause baby to die. Sometimes it is fetal distress syndrome.

Depends: An autopsy may be able to rule out congenital abnormalities that were not known while in the womb. Additionally an autopsy and placenta exam may determine if an infection caused the death of the baby. Sometimes an autopsy will not be able to come up with a definitive cause of death.

I recommend it: A full workup including a chromosome analysis can often provide the parents with a lot of information that will help them in the future.If a sporadic defect is found, the likelihood of a repeat can be calculated. Infections/cord accidents/stc are often not evident at first glance but knowing can help parents understand and get past the process. Not doing one often leads to long term questions.