Difficulty in brainstem death testing in the presence of high spinal cord injury

Difficulty in brainstem death testing in the presence of high spinal cord injury: "The diagnosis of brain death in most European countries and in the US, is defined as the total and irreversible loss of all brain functions (the ‘whole’ brain concept).1 Only in the UK2 is brain death defined as a non‐functional state of the brainstem in which all the signs of brainstem activity are absent (the ‘lower’ brain concept). In this context, examination of cortical and subcortical bioelectrical activity is not necessary in the UK and therefore an EEG and other technical tests need not be performed."

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