Reader response: An interdisciplinary response to contemporary concerns about brain death determination

Brain death is the state of irreversible loss of the clinical functions of the brain. A patient must meet strict criteria to be declared brain dead. They must have suffered a known and demonstrably irreversible brain injury and must not have a condition that could render neurologic testing unreliable. If the patient meets these criteria, a formal brain death examination can be performed. The three findings in brain death are coma or unresponsiveness, absence of brainstem reflexes, and apnea. Brain death is closely tied to organ donation, because brain-dead patients represent approximately 90% of deceased donors and thus a large majority of donated organs. This review details a definition and overview of brain death, determination of brain death, and controversy over brain death, as well as the types of organ donation (living donation versus deceased donation), donation after brain death, and donation after cardiac death. A figure presents a comparison of organ donation after brain death and after cardiac death, and a table lists the American Academy of Neurology Criteria for Determination of Brain Death. This review contains 1 highly rendered figure, 3 table, and 20 references.

Get full-text (via PubEx)

Analyzing EEG of Quasi-Brain-Death Based on Dynamic Sample Entropy Measures

Computational and Mathematical Methods in Medicine ◽

10.1155/2013/618743 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2013 ◽

pp. 1-6 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Li Ni ◽

Jianting Cao ◽

Rubin Wang

Keyword(s):

Brain Death ◽

Real Time ◽

Time Window ◽

Approximate Entropy ◽

Sample Entropy ◽

Well Performance ◽

Entropy Measures ◽

Brain Death Determination ◽

Death Determination ◽

The Brain

To give a more definite criterion using electroencephalograph (EEG) approach on brain death determination is vital for both reducing the risks and preventing medical misdiagnosis. This paper presents several novel adaptive computable entropy methods based on approximate entropy (ApEn) and sample entropy (SampEn) to monitor the varying symptoms of patients and to determine the brain death. The proposed method is a dynamic extension of the standard ApEn and SampEn by introducing a shifted time window. The main advantages of the developed dynamic approximate entropy (DApEn) and dynamic sample entropy (DSampEn) are for real-time computation and practical use. Results from the analysis of 35 patients (63 recordings) show that the proposed methods can illustrate effectiveness and well performance in evaluating the brain consciousness states.

Get full-text (via PubEx)

Brain Death Determination Practices in Children

JAMA ◽

10.1001/jama.1995.03530220027023 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 274 (22) ◽

pp. 1761

Author(s):

Joan A. Lynch

Keyword(s):

Brain Death ◽

Brain Death Determination ◽

Death Determination

Get full-text (via PubEx)