David Dobbs

  • Autopsy at Hotel-Dieu by Henri Gervex

    We Need More Autopsies, to Help Save the Living

    When Italian authorities confirmed that James Gandolfini had just died in Rome of an apparent heart attack in 2013, many reports in American media fronted the fact that Gandolfini’s body would be autopsied, “as required by Italian law.” They emphasized this news for understandable reasons—an autopsy on someone who died in medical care seemed unusual. […]

  • Autopsy at Hotel-Dieu

    Why Autopsy Gandolfini? Death Is Certain; Its Cause Is Not

    When Italian authorities confirmed Wednesday that James Gandolfini had just died in Rome of an apparent heart attack, many of the US reports fronted the fact that Gandolfini’s body would be autopsied, “as required by Italian law.” They fronted this news for understandable reasons—an autopsy on someone who died in medical care seemed unusual. In […]