Since I’m already in such a lovely mood this afternoon let’s go for another maudlin topic, shall we?
My uncle died suddenly the weekend before Thanksgiving. As he died at home and not in the hospital the major organs were useless for donation, but other bits were not, e.g., corneas, tendons, ligaments, and skin.
When corneas are harvested the body is to remain in an inclined position (head up) for a certain period of time before it is flipped around to get the other parts. The harvesting team did not do this, and as a result the guy laying in the casket did not at all look like Mel (relief, actually). To the point that the funeral home filed a formal complaint with the ?Red Cross? or whoever did it.
Now, I’m alive and living and breathing, so if someone scrapes off my cornea I’d expect swelling around my eyes - white blood cells coming to the rescue and all that. But why would this happen to a dead guy?
Well, I’ll bump this from Page 2 for you, but I have to say I’m not sure what you’re asking, exactly. You’re saying his face was all swollen and you want to know why?
Even though the usual biologic processes don’t apply after death, fluids still react to gravity.
There are two compartments in the eye, and each is filled with fluid. I’m guessing that the reason the body is kept inclined is to keep the fluid from draining forward and settling, causing swelling. I think it’s mainly for cosmetic reasons.
