BookAriane Lewis, James L. Bernat, editors.
Summary: This book presents principal controversies over the determination of death by neurologic criteria ("brain death"). The editors and authors are exceedingly well-versed in this subject and are on the forefront of the current debates. The content is divided in the following disciplinary: philosophical (conceptual), medical, scientific, legal, religious, and ethical/social. Many of the topics feature pro-con debates, allowing readers to consider the merits of the arguments and decide their own position. The work is targeted to clinicians and nurses who treat critically ill and dying patients, organ donation personnel, ethicists and philosophers who write on end-of-life issues, and lawyers and legislative/public policy professionals who draft laws on death determination. It identifies and debates the essential controversies currently raging in academic and public policy circles over the medical adequacy, scientific validity, and conceptual coherence of death determination by neurologic criteria. Whether a professional or a student, the reader will be given a comprehensive course in the most pressing controversies and areas of consensus in the determination of death by neurologic criteria.
Contents:
Introduction/History of Death Determination by Neurologic Criteria
Part I: Philosophical/Conceptual
Arguments Supporting Neurologic Criteria to Determine Death
Arguments Rejecting Neurologic Criteria to Determine Death
Arguments Supporting the Whole-Brain Criterion
Arguments Supporting the Brain Stem Criterion
Loss of Hypothalamic Function is Required to Determine Death by Neurologic Criteria
Loss of Hypothalamic Function is not Required to Determine Death by Neurologic Criteria
Part II: Medical
Intra/International Variability in the Determination of Death by Neurologic Criteria
Controversies in Determining Death by Neurological Criteria in Pediatric Patients
Arguments in Favor of Requiring the Absence of Brain Circulation to Determine Death by Neurologic Criteria
Arguments Opposing the Requirement to Demonstrate Absence of Blood Flow to Determine Death by Neurologic Criteria
Reports of "Recovery" from Death by Neurologic Criteria
Observation Time Prior to Determination of Death by Neurologic Criteria
Temperature Considerations in the Determination of Death by Neurologic Criteria
How Many Evaluations are Required to Determine Death by Neurologic Criteria?
Part III: Scientific
Research Questions about Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria
Research on Patients Declared Dead by Neurologic Criteria
The Impact of Restoring Postmortem Mammalian Brain Circulation and Cellular Functions on the Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria
Part IV: Legal
The Content of Laws on Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria
Is Consent Required for Physicians Determination of Death by Neurologic Criteria?
Legal Response to Religious and Other Objections to Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria
Death by Neurologic Criteria is a Legal Fiction
Legal Considerations on the Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria in the Pregnant Patient
Part V: Religious
Christian Perspectives on Death by Neurologic Criteria
Islamic Perspectives on Death by Neurologic Criteria
Jewish Perspectives on Death by Neurologic Criteria
Part VI: Ethical/Social
Public Views on Death by Neurologic Criteria
Cultural Considerations in the Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria in Asia
Cultural Considerations in the Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria in Africa
The Argument for Personal Choice in Defining Death
The distinction Between Death Declaration and Death Determination Using Neurologic
Criteria
Why Families Object to Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria
Arguments Favoring Continuation of Organ Support when Families Object to Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria
Arguments Opposing Continuation of Organ Support when Families Object to Declaration of Death by Neurological Criteria.