Neurológia pre prax 3/2015

Brain death – medical aspects, legislative standards in Slovak republic

The death of an individual was considered after cardiac and respiratory arrest till the middle of last century. The concept of death has changed after development of resuscitation, extracorporeal circulation and with progression of organ transplantation. The organism is considered as dead even with the cessation of all brain functions, including the brainstem, irrespective of persistent cardiovascular and other organ functions. The declaration of brain death is not uniform worldwide, but varies between developed countries. Slovak republic enacted the algorithm of brain death declaration in the late seventies and is still valid until today. The determination of brain death has not only ethical and legal importance eventhough it is an important prerequisite for the organ removal from deceased heartbeating donors for transplantation purposes.

Keywords: brain death, declaration of brain death.