rigor mortis
Sign in to saveAlso known as postmortem rigidity
postmortem stiffening of the limbs of a corpse
Research
657 papers- Rigor Mortis.The Indian medical gazette · 1888
- Editorial: Scientific Rigor or Rigor Mortis?eNeuro · 2016
- Hybrid rigor mortis.Nature biotechnology · 2003
- Rigor mortis.British medical journal · 1950
- Rigor or rigor mortis: the problem of rigor in qualitative research revisited.ANS. Advances in nursing science · 1993
via PubMed
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- decomposition
- Followed by
- livor mortis
- Follows
- algor mortis
Show 1 more fact
- Commons category
- Rigor mortis
Sources (3)
via Wikidata · CC0
~7 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Rigor mortis (from Latin rigor 'stiffness' and mortis 'of death'), or postmortem rigidity, is the fourth stage of death. It is one of the recognizable signs of death, characterized by stiffening of the limbs of the corpse caused by chemical changes in the muscles postmortem (mainly calcium). In humans, rigor mortis can occur as soon as four hours after death.
Physiology
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “rigor mortis” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.