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Brain death is used as an indicator of legal death in many jurisdictions, [6] but it is defined inconsistently and often confused by the public. [7] Various parts of the brain may keep functioning when others do not anymore, and the term "brain death" has been used to refer to various combinations.
The certification applies to somatic death, corresponding to death of the person, which has varying definitions but most commonly describes a lack of vital signs and brain function. [9] Death at the level of cells, called molecular death or cell death , follows a matter of hours later. [ 10 ]
The phenomenon has been observed to occur several minutes after the removal of medical ventilators used to pump air in and out of brain-dead patients. [4] It also occurs during testing for apnea—that is, suspension of external breathing and motion of the lung muscles—which is one of the criteria for determining brain death used for example by the American Academy of Neurology.
Brain death is sometimes used as a legal definition of death. [15] For all organisms with a brain, death can instead be focused on this organ. [16] [17] The cause of death is usually considered important and an autopsy can be done. There are many causes, from accidents to diseases.
A legal entity called the Uniform Law Commission, which is charged with clarifying and stabilizing complicated laws across the country, formalized the brain-death criterion in 1980. Most U.S ...
After brain death the patient lacks any sense of awareness; sleep-wake cycles or behavior, and typically look as if they are dead or are in a deep sleep-state or coma. Although visually similar to a comatose state such as persistent vegetative state, the two should not be confused. Criteria for brain death differ from country to country.
Researchers studying the brain’s final moments have gained new insight into the “wave of death” that occurs before a brain’s activity fully flatlines. When neural activity stops, it doesn ...
A brain scan found telltale signs of vascular damage in Nicholls’ brain, which occurs when the tiniest blood vessels are starved of oxygen. “The doctors said I had too many white matter lesions.