BRAIN DEATH [ back to What's New ]
A recent article in Cerebrum (Dana Press) distinguished between: (1) lack of cortical function (conscious thought) with an intact brain stem which would keep the patient alive in a biologic sense without the need for mechanical means since the heart would beat and the lungs respire on their own; (2) intact cortical function without brain stem function, in which a person having conscious thought would need mechanical means to keep him alive; and (3) total, irreversible cessation of cortical and brain stem function in which mechanical means would be necessary to keep the patient alive in a biologic sense but where the patient would never have conscious thoughts, perceptions or memories. It was category #3 that the author stated would be acceptable on ethical and religious as well as legal and medical grounds, as a standard criterion for brain death, which would permit "pulling the plug" and harvesting organs for donation.