What is clinical-pathological correlation in an autopsy report?

In an autopsy report, a clinical-pathological correlation is a concluding statement of analysis that synthesizes the findings from the postmortem examination with the patient's clinical picture—the symptoms and signs observed while the individual was alive.1

This process is a critical component of the final autopsy record. It serves to bridge the gap between the medical history and the physical evidence discovered during the dissection, providing a comprehensive understanding of the disease processes that were present at the time of death. By comparing the clinical observations with the anatomical and pathological findings, this correlation helps to validate diagnoses, identify potential errors in previous clinical assessments, and clarify the evolution of the disease.1