preconditions for certifying brainstem death
Last reviewed 01/2018
Certain criteria must be satisfied before brainstem death can be acknowledged: Patient factors:
- cause of condition compatible with irreversible brain damage
- in a coma and on a ventilator
- not hypothermic - temperature must be above 35 degrees C
- not on depressant drugs
- metabolic and endocrine disturbances have been excluded
Staff involved:
- doctor should be qualified for more than 5 years
- two sets of tests must be compatible and performed by different doctors, ideally from different teams
- doctor should not be part of the transplant team