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He was found dead in his cell on Saturday in The Hague where he was on trial for war crimes.
A toxicological report on the body has still to be completed amid allegations he may have died of poisoning.
An official for the UN tribunal said that his remains would be released to on Monday to his family.
The tribunal said that the full autopsy report might take more than another day to be released but that the preliminary results showed Mr Milosevic had died of a "myocardial infarction", the medical term for a heart attack.
Mr Milosevic, 64, had been suffering from two heart conditions, it added, without naming them.
'Drug traces'
Slobodan Milosevic feared he was being poisoned just a day before he died in his cell, according to lawyer Zdenko Tomanovic.
| | HAVE YOUR SAY His death came 15 years too late Ana, Belgrade |
Mr Milosevic had, he said, been citing a medical report from 12 January.
Mr Milosevic had requested permission to travel to Moscow for medical treatment but the tribunal refused, fearing that he might not return to The Hague.
Dutch public television NOS reported on Sunday that a blood sample taken from Mr Milosevic some time between November and January had shown traces of drugs often used to treat leprosy or tuberculosis.
They may have neutralised the medicine Mr Milosevic was taking for high blood pressure and heart problems, it said, quoting an unidentified tribunal "adviser".
UN chief prosecutor Carla del Ponte has cautioned against "rumours" and pointed out that the toxicological report could take up to 24 hours to complete.
Tribunal ploughs on
Ms del Ponte said Mr Milosevic's death made it even more urgent for Serbia to arrest the most wanted Bosnian Serb war crimes fugitives, Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadzic.
| | MILOSEVIC TRIAL FACTS 295 witnesses testified 5,000 exhibits presented in court 466 days of hearings |
Mr Milosevic had been held at the UN war crimes tribunal since 2001.
He was on trial on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his alleged central role in the wars in Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo during the 1990s.
He also faced genocide charges over the 1992-95 Bosnia war, in which 100,000 people died.
Correspondents say the tribunal's monitoring of inmates is under scrutiny because Mr Milosevic's death came within a week of the suicide of a former rebel Croatian Serb leader, Milan Babic.
Funeral questions
Both Mr Milosevic's widow Mirjana Markovic and son Marko have blamed the tribunal for his death.
| | CHARGES AGAINST MILOSEVIC Genocide, relating to the massacre in Srebrenica, Bosnia Crimes against humanity, relating to Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo Grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, relating to Bosnia and Croatia Violations of the laws or customs of war, relating to Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo |
They are living in Moscow and both face fraud charges in Serbia so it is not yet clear whether Mr Milosevic's funeral will take place in his homeland.
His daughter Marija, now living in Montenegro, would also face criminal charges in Serbia.
Serbian state television led its bulletins on Sunday with the memorial service for reformist Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, assassinated exactly three years ago.
It was his government which sent Mr Milosevic to The Hague.
The Serbian government has said Slobodan Milosevic should not receive a state funeral if his body is sent back to his home country for burial.
In the circumstances that could mean Mr Milosevic is buried in Russia, the BBC's Chris Morris reports from Belgrade.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/4799880.stm
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