|
BACK TO HOMEPAGE
Preservation of
the body before placement in the coffin.
Suggested means and authorizations
Definition,
objectives and techniques used in thanatopraxis
Thanatopraxis and religion
Europe and acts
of thanatopraxis
Country
requiring preparation of the body before repatriation
Suggested reading
Suggested means of preservation and required authorizations
The preservation of the body before placing in a coffin
may be performed as follows:
1)
WITH COLD
Use of dry
ice (carbon dioxide ice)
This is the common, traditional technique for preservation at home.
It gives perfect results in 95% of the cases.
Dry ice is applied on different parts of the body, which freeze on contact
(- 96 degrees).
The ice must be changed every 24 hours.
Attention : Some funeral homes use products for freezing food product, not
dry ice, in order to save money. These products do not satisfy the
criteria imposed for preservation of bodies.
No administrative requirements, no authorization required, no police
involvement.
Use of
refrigeration equipment (refrigerated lockers, beds or technical ramps)
Refrigerated lockers are used in mortuaries and funerary chambers.
Beds and refrigerated ramps may be suggested if the body will remain in
the home.
No administrative requirements, no authorization required, no police
involvement.
2) CHEMICAL PROCESS
Embalming (synonyms:
thanatopraxis, formolisation, preservation act, IFT®).
Injection of 6 to 10 litres of an aseptic and sterilizing formaldehyde
product. This procedure takes about one and a half hours to complete.
The preservation is perfect in 90% of the cases.
This method implies:
- no legal opposition on the death certificate delivered by the physician;
- a signed authorization by the family;
- an authorization of care delivered by city hall. The description
of the procedure and a sample of the product used must be supplied by the
embalmer.
- The presence of a police official, a game warden or an officer of the
municipal police force to witness the procedure is subject to
compensation.
Legislation regarding preservation care: authorization, product and record
of proceedings (french)
|
When
death occurs at home, use of a preservation method such as :
- dry ice,
- refrigerated ramp,
- embalming.
to avoid transferring the mortal remains to a private funeral
parlour or having to keep the remains in a refrigerated locker.
This procedure may be recommended, but not imposed, when closing
the coffin is deferred several days.
|
Definition of
thanatopraxis (embalming)
Thanatopraxis or embalming consists of
several techniques used to preserve and expose the mortal remains, with
somatic care.
From the Greek "THANATOS", the god of death and "PRAXIS", practice.
Aim of thanatopraxis
- Delay the natural process of decomposition.
- Promote hygiene and suppress
odours.
- Give a more natural appearance
to the face.
Procedure and techniques used in
thanatopraxis
-
Throughout washing to achieve complete
external asepsis of the body.
-
Incision in the middle of the clavicula.
Injection of a formaldehyde solution in the carotid artery and
simultaneous evacuation of blood through the jugular vein.
Other access or evacuation points may be selected by the technician.
-
Elimination of liquids and gas through
an incision near the navel.
Injection of concentrated formaldehyde.
-
Closing of the incisions.
-
External washing of the remains,
asepsis of orifices (mouth, nose, ears...).
-
A sample bottle of the liquid used is
attached to the ankle.
End of the intervention with clothing,
make-up and hairdressing.
Legal obligations to have somatic care
performed
Some countries require the injection of a
formaldehyde liquid before repatriation of a coffin (see below the list of
these countries).
|
The cost of these procedures may be high : request a written
estimate and know you can freely choose which funeral home for
embalming care or which transporter.
|
Thanatopraxis and religion
- Accepted
by Christian religion (Catholic or Protestant).
- Forbidden by Jewish religion.
- Forbidden by Islam (except for
repatriation of the coffin to some countries)
Europe and embalming
practices
High
prescriber : England.
Recent introduction, occasionally
performed : Germany, Spain, Ireland.
No interest: Austria, Greece, Italy,
Malta, Portugal, Switzerland.
Ban and avoidance of these procedures
: Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Luxembourg, Scandinavian countries.
(except for repatriation of a coffin
to some countries).
Affections that forbid
somatic care
- Anthrax*.
- Cholera*.
- Hemorrhagic fevers*.
- Viral hepatitis.
- Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
- Plague*.
- Rabies.
- AIDS.
- Smallpox and other orthopoxviruses*.
- Any serious septic condition, upon attending physician's
stipulation |
*: the remains must
be placed in a hermetically sealed coffin equipped with a gas
purifier immediately following death at home or before exiting the
health care institution.
Final closing of the coffin is done without any delay. |
-
Order of July 20, 1998, establishing the
list of contagious diseases forbidding certain funerary procedures
identified in the by-law 76-435, May 18, 1976, amending the by-law of
December 32, 1941.
-
Order from the Conseil d'Etat, November 8,
1999, authorizing again somatic care for :
- Serious septic condition,
-
Confirmed hepatitis A,
- Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
-
January 1st, 2018 : somatic care is
again allowed for AIDS.
|
ALBANIA |
ARGENTINA |
AUSTRALIA |
BANGLADESH |
|
BARBADOS |
BENIN |
BOLIVIA |
BRAZIL |
|
BULGARIA |
CANADA |
CHILI |
CHINA |
|
COLUMBIA |
COSTA-RICA |
CUBA |
CYPRUS |
|
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC |
EGYPT |
EL SALVADOR |
GHANA |
|
GREECE |
GUATEMALA |
HONDURAS |
HUNGARY |
|
ICELAND |
INDIA |
INDONESIA |
IRAN |
|
IRAQ |
JAPAN |
JORDANIA |
LEBANON |
|
LIBERIA |
LIBYA |
MALAYSIA (except Muslims) |
MALDIVES |
|
MAURITIUS |
MEXICO |
MONGOLIA |
NEW-ZEALAND |
|
NICARAGUA |
PAKISTAN |
PANAMA |
PARAGUAY |
|
PERU |
PHILIPPINES |
PUERTO-RICO |
ROMANIA |
|
RUSSIA |
SAUDI ARABIA |
SOUTH AFRICA |
SRI LANKA |
|
SYRIA |
TAIWAN |
UNITED-KINGDOM |
URUGUAY |
|
U.S.A. |
VENEZUELA |
VIETNAM |
|
Suggested reading
L'ART DE L'EMBAUMEMENT, an
introduction to thanatopraxis, by Eric Bourgeois. Editions Berger (Canada)
Distribution in France and Belgium:
DG Diffusion, rue Max Planck BP 734 31683 LABEGE
|