brain death by francheska camilo
TRANSCRIPT
www.FrancheskaCamilo.com
Francheska Camilo González
English Version: March 6, 2014
Brain Death
Consciousness is a knowledge in which human beings are alert to the sensations, feelings and
thoughts experimented in a particular time, in order to show the reactions that arising by the
events experienced by a person. The loss of the consciousness can be caused for a trauma to the
central nervous system (CNS), poisoning, metabolic disorders and neurological disorders. The
loss of awareness results in a decrease or the elimination of certain acts of reflex, causing the
individual reacts only to a limited number of stimuli in their environment.
Brain death is defined by the irreversible culmination of all intracranial structural and
neurological function in the hemispheres of the brain and brainstem. A brain injury causes the
loss of the regulating mechanism that the brain produces on other organs and components of an
individual's consciousness. Thus, a person with brain death will not have the functions that allow
to open the eyes, talk, feel sensations, respond to stimuli, among others.
Neurologists are professional of neuroscience. According to these neuroscience professionals,
the initial brain death occurs in the cerebral cortex and spreads affecting to the whole brain and
the individual's body. The neurologist is responsible for determining when the brain injury
reaches an irreversible level, and this is determinate by a positive apnea test and other evidence
indicating the absence of all brain stem reflexes. Many of these neurologists refuse to declare
brain death when an individual's heart continues to beat, because that there are cases where
patients have awakened from a state of brain death, leaving the interrogative in neuroscience
professionals about the irreversible level in the process or loss of consciousness due to brain
death.
The brain death occurs mostly in individuals who have a destruction of brain tissue caused by a
head injury that occurs in an accident. These people are diagnosed with brain death, because they
have lost the total of mechanisms of consciousness which allow being alert to sensations,
feelings and thoughts that show reflexes in response or reaction to these. A significant
controversy over the diagnosis of brain death worldwide is that some think that this could be
diagnosed for organ procurement in these patients and by this way to help other people with
other diseases. Also in investigations it was found that the neuronal stem cells from individuals
alive or dead (with brain death) and embryonic can be used to treat a number of diseases where
which includes restoring the memory of persons who have suffered certain types Damage in the
brain. These are some of the reasons why many neurologists do not confirm the state of brain
death in patients up to the time that the heart stops beating.
REFERENCES:
Vázquez, A. & Vázquez, L. (2010). Bases Neurobiológicas de la Conducta Psicológica. 144-
1488p. Perdida de la Conciencia. ISBN 978-1-59608-835-1.
Per Ardua ad Astra. Muerte cerebral, coma, estado vegetativo y cautiverio.
Available: January 21, 2012. http://perarduaadastra.eu/2010/11/muerte-cerebral-coma-estado-
vegetativo-y-cautiverio/
Nieves, A. Estados de la Conciencia. Available: January 21, 2012.
http://academic.uprm.edu/anieves/.../Estados_Alterados_de_Conciencia.ppt
Organización Nacional de Trasplante de Venezuela (ONTV). La muerte encefálica.
Available: January 21, 2012.
http://www.ontv-venezuela.org/articulo.php?carticulo=86
Saposnik, G. Muerte Cerebral, Muerte Encefálica o Muerte bajo criterios neurológicos.
Available: January 21, 2012.
http://usuarios.advance.com.ar/cucailapampa/Vin/que_es_la_muerte.htm
Atiénzar, M. ¿Tenemos un único cerebro y cuándo nace?. Available: January 21, 2012.
http://www.laondadigital.com/laonda/laonda/301-400/372/a6.htm
Balladares, G. &Cardenal, V. & Díez, P. & Vicente S. Las Células madre.
Available: January 21, 2012.
http://filomania.es/celulasmadre1%BAc.html
Amazings. Las Células Madre Pueden Ayudar a Mejorar la Memoria Después de una Lesión
Cerebral. Available: January 21, 2012.
http://www.amazings.com/ciencia/noticias/051207d.html