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Caution issued against early withdrawal of Life Support for severe TBI

On 8/29/11 the Canadian Medical Association issued a caution against early withdrawal of life support for patients with severe TBI. They found that 70% of hospital deaths among patients with severe TBI came from withdrawal of life support within the first three days of admission to ICU. Yet withdrawing life support during that time frame based on low GCS (Glasgow Coma Scale) score could be a mistake because the low score could be due to the temporary effects of drugs or medicine and not the permanent effects of the brain injury.