| Abstract | dc.description.abstract | This paper undertakes an analysis of the scientific criteria used in
the diagnosis of death and underscores the importance of intellectual rigor in the definition of
medical concepts, particularly regarding such a critical issue as the diagnosis of death. Under the
cardiorespiratory criterion, death is defined as «the irreversible cessation of the functioning of an
organism as a whole» and the tests used to confirm this criterion (negative life-signs) are sensitive
and specific. In this case, cadaverous phenomena appear immediately following the diagnosis of
death. On the other hand, doubts have arisen concerning the theoretical and the inner consistency
of the criterion of brain death, since it does not satisfy the definition of «the irreversible cessation
of the functioning of an organism as a whole», nor the requirement of «total and irreversible
cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem». There is evidence to the
effect that the tests used to confirm this criterion are not specific enough. It is clear that brain
death marks the beginning of a process that eventually ends in death, though death does not occur
at that moment. From an ethical point of view, the conflict arises between the need to provide
an unequivocal diagnosis of death and the possibility of saving a life through organ transplantation.
The sensitive issue of brain death calls for a more thorough and in-depth discussion among
physicians and the community at large | en |
