Brain Death and Disorders of Consciousness, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2004 Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology Series, Vol. 550

Although some decades have passed, there are still worldwide controversies about a concept of human death on neurological grounds. There are also disagreements on the diagnostic criteria for brain death, whether clinical alone or clinical plus ancillary tests. Moreover, some scholars who were strong defenders of a brain-based standard of death are now favoring a circulatory-respiratory standard. The study of coma is extremely important because lesions of the brain are responsible for quality of life in patients or cause of death. The main goal of Brain Death and Disorders of Consciousness is to provide a suitable scientific platform to discuss all topics related to human death and coma.

Philosophical, Ethical, and Legal Issues.- Brain Death: Updating a Valid Concept for 2004.- The Concept of Brain Death.- The “Critical Organ” for the Organism as a Whole: Lessons from the Lowly Spinal Cord.- “Brain Death” Is Not Death.- The Conceptual Basis for Brain Death Revisited: Loss of Organic Integration or Loss of Consciousness?.- Consciousness, Mind, Brain, and Death.- The Death of Death.- The Semiotics of Death and Its Medical Implications.- About the Continuity of Our Consciousness.- Brain Death and Organ Transplantation: Concepts and Principles in Judaism.- Cuba Has Passed a Law for the Determination and Certification of Death.- Diagnosis, Pathophysiology and Treatment.- Neuroprotection Becomes Reality: Changing Times for Cerebral Resuscitation.- Controlled Hypertension for Refractory High Intracranial Pressure.- On Irreversibility as a Prerequisite for Brain Death Determination.- How Should Testing for Apnea Be Performed in Diagnosing Brain Death?.- Evoked Potentials in the Diagnosis of Brain Death.- Recovery from Near Death following Cerebral Anoxia: A Case Report Demonstrating Superiority of Median Somatosensory Evoked Potentials over EEG in Predicting a Favorable Outcome after Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation.- Human Brain-Dead Donors and 31P MRS Studies on Feline Myocardial Energy Metabolism.- Organ Donation after Fatal Poisoning: An Update with Recent Literature Data.- The ABC of PVS: Problems of Definition.- Brain Function in the Vegetative State.- Global Neurodynamics and Deep Brain Stimulation: Appreciating the Perspectives of Place and Process.- Honoring Treatment Preferences near the End of Life: The Oregon Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST) Program.- Palliative Sedation in Terminally Ill Patients.