Caring for a brain dead potential organ donor requires a shift in critical care from the
extensive treatment of increased intracranial pressure towards strategies to maintain donor …

Organ transplantation represents one of the great success stories of 20th century medicine.
However, its continued success is greatly limited by the shortage of donor organs. This has …

Background The ascertainment of brain death (the irreversible, total loss of brain function)
gives the physician the opportunity to limit or stop further treatment. Alternatively, if the brain …

With improved healthcare, more patients survive to develop chronic diseases and end organ
failure. Solid organ transplants are increasingly performed to replace failing or failed organs …

Mortality remains high for patients on the waiting list for organ transplantation. A marked
imbalance between the number of available organs and recipients that need to be …

Organ transplantation often depends on obtaining functioning organs from a donor who has
recently died. This review presents a structured approach to management of the care of the …

The majority of organs transplanted in the United States are from brain-dead donors. The
patients are usually located in an intensive care unit at the time of declaration of brain death …

Despite major advances in our understanding of the physiopathology of brain death (BD),
there are important controversies as to which protocol is the most appropriate for organ …

Brain death is associated with complex hemodynamic, endocrine, and metabolic dysfunction
that can lead to major complications with the potential donor. Untreated, this can progress to …

The systemic physiologic changes that occur during and after brain death affect all organs
suitable for transplantation. Major changes occur in the cardiovascular, pulmonary …