Brain Death

If the brain is damaged due to a severe head injury, stroke or trauma, or if the blood supply to the brain is stopped, it can no longer oversee the body's functions. Due to the lack of blood supply, the brain dies and will never work again. Brain death is death. It is not reversible. If all tests show the brain is no longer functioning, the patient has died.

A physician who is not part of the transplant team performs specific examinations and guidelines to determine whether brain death has occurred. After the absence of brain activity is determined, the diagnosis of brain death is confirmed. Once someone has been declared brain dead, there is no chance for that individual to recover.

Once death has occurred, breathing is not possible without a ventilator. The ventilator keeps oxygen-rich blood flowing in the body, so the patient's skin may be warm and have normal color, and the chest continues to move up and down as a result of the ventilator's artificial breaths. However, the patient no longer has any sensations and cannot feel pain.

Because the person is on a ventilator, organ donation may be an option. As long as the ventilator is maintained adequately, organs may be viable for transplant. However, the ventilator can only supply the body with oxygen for a limited amount of time.

A procurement transplant coordinator remains with the patient throughout the procedure.