Aligning the Criterion and Tests for Brain Death

Disturbing cases continue to be published of patients declared brain dead who later were found to have a few intact brain functions. We address the reasons for the mismatch between the whole-brain criterion and brain death tests, and suggest solutions. Many of the cases result from diagnostic errors...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cambridge quarterly of healthcare ethics
Authors: Bernat, James L. (Author) ; Ave, Anne L. Dalle (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Cambridge Univ. Press 2019
In: Cambridge quarterly of healthcare ethics
Further subjects:B Brain Death
B whole brain criterion
B brain death determination
B brain death tests
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Summary:Disturbing cases continue to be published of patients declared brain dead who later were found to have a few intact brain functions. We address the reasons for the mismatch between the whole-brain criterion and brain death tests, and suggest solutions. Many of the cases result from diagnostic errors in brain death determination. Others probably result from a tiny amount of residual blood flow to the brain despite intracranial circulatory arrest. Strategies to lessen the mismatch include improving brain death determination training for physicians, mandating a test showing complete intracranial circulatory arrest, or revising the whole-brain criterion.
ISSN:1469-2147
Contains:Enthalten in: Cambridge quarterly of healthcare ethics
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1017/S0963180119000574