Necroética: el cuerpo muerto y su dignidad póstuma

The attribution of human dignity and fundamental rights has been preached almost exclusively in relation to the person who can express interests, deploy autonomous decisions and assume responsibilities. In this article we defend the thesis according to which it is possible to attribute the notion of posthumous dignity to the dead person, from which are derived rights and obligations in the treatment of his corpse and histopathological components, as well as referring to the validation of his interests, desires and beliefs expressed in life, which is ratified by the normative dispositions in force in our country. Based on the concept of necroethics, we support the communitarian nature of death and the practical implications of the recognition of posthumous dignity in the teaching of medicine, the performance of autopsies for medical and forensic purposes, and the disposition of bodies for public exhibition.