Bernat J L
Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire.
Neurol Clin. 1989 Nov;7(4):715-28.
There is a consensus in Western society that "brain death" is the medical and legal standard for human death. Patients in persistent vegetative states may have lost their "personhood," but they are not dead. It may be desirable to maintain the physiologic processes of a brain-dead pregnant woman to permit the birth of her child. The determination of brain death and plans for multiorgan transplantation should be conducted independently. It is axiomatic that the multiorgan transplantation donor must be dead. Therefore, living anencephalic infants and patients in persistent vegetative states cannot be organ donors. It is permissable to temporarily maintain the physiologic processes of brain-dead patients in order procure their organs for transplantation. Society will have to decide if money spent on multiorgan procurement and transplantation is better spent in other areas of health care.
西方社会存在一种共识，即“脑死亡”是判定人类死亡的医学和法律标准。处于持续性植物状态的患者可能已丧失其“人格”，但他们并未死亡。维持脑死亡孕妇的生理过程以使其胎儿能够出生或许是可取的。脑死亡的判定以及多器官移植计划应独立进行。多器官移植供体必须已死亡，这是不言而喻的。因此，无脑儿活体婴儿和处于持续性植物状态的患者不能作为器官供体。为了获取脑死亡患者的器官用于移植，暂时维持其生理过程是可行的。社会将不得不决定，花在多器官获取和移植上的资金是否更适合用于医疗保健的其他领域。
