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Brain Death

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Neurosurgical Ethics in Practice: Value-based Medicine

Abstract

Brain death is the determination of death by neurological criteria, in contrast to the traditional determination of death by assessing a lack of circulation and respiration. Brain death is only relevant in patients who have suffered severe brain insult from a variety of causes, many of them neurosurgical, and who are receiving modern critical care to support breathing and circulation. Many jurisdictions have equated brain death with death determined by cardiopulmonary arrest. Brain death is important because the concept of brain death exposes a diversity of beliefs in society and frequently becomes the flashpoint for ethical dilemmas for healthcare teams or conflicts between healthcare teams and families.

In this chapter, the history, definition, and clinical and laboratory determination of brain death are presented as well as implications for organ procurement. In addition, potential sources of conflicts with families and some strategies to resolve them are discussed.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Respirology, Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine, Toronto Western Hospital, University of Toronto, 399 Bathurst Street 2 McLaughlin PavillioN 411K, Toronto, ON, M5T 2S8, Canada

    Jeffrey M. Singh MD, FRCPC

  2. Division of Neurosurgery, Toronto Western Hospital, University of Toronto, 399 Bathurst Street, Toronto, ON, M5T 2S8, Canada

    Mark Bernstein MD, MHSc, FRCSC

Authors
  1. Jeffrey M. Singh MD, FRCPC
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  2. Mark Bernstein MD, MHSc, FRCSC
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jeffrey M. Singh MD, FRCPC .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Neurosurgery, King Fahd University Hospital, Dammam University, Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia

    Ahmed Ammar

  2. Division of Neurosurgery, Toronto Western Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

    Mark Bernstein

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Singh, J.M., Bernstein, M. (2014). Brain Death. In: Ammar, A., Bernstein, M. (eds) Neurosurgical Ethics in Practice: Value-based Medicine. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-54980-9_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-54980-9_10

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-54979-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-54980-9

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