BDT Foundations
A catastrophic brain injury may look severe, but it is not the same thing as this legal determination.
What is brain death?
This step is required to confirm brain function loss is not evolving or recovering.
What is the observation period?
Confounders must be ruled out because they can make a patient appear brain dead even though the condition may be this.
What is reversible?
What is non-permanent?
What is mimicking?
This part of brain death testing evaluates responsiveness and loss of brainstem reflexes.
What is the neurologic examination?
Seeing a beating heart or warm skin does not mean this has not occurred.
What is brain death?
This one word in the definition of brain death explains why doctors must wait and observe instead of acting immediately.
What is permanent?
What is irreversible?
Neuroimaging must confirm this
What is the presence of a devastating neurological injury?
This condition can suppress reflexes if the patient’s body temperature is too low.
What is hypothermia?
This specific test is used to determine whether the brain can still trigger breathing when carbon dioxide levels rise.
What is the apnea test?
A common misconception is that brain death testing exists to speed up this process.
What is organ donation?
Brain death is defined as the complete and permanent loss of this.
What is all brain and brainstem function?
Before testing begins, blood pressure must be adequate to support this.
What is brain perfusion?
These substances can suppress responsiveness and reflexes, making brain function appear absent when it is not.
What are sedatives, paralytics, and toxins?
This type of testing is required if part of the clinical exam or apnea test cannot be completed.
What is ancillary testing?
A common misconception is that if organ donation is possible, doctors stop doing this for the patient.
What is providing life‑sustaining care?
What is continuing all appropriate medical care?
These are conditions that can mimic signs of brain death and must be ruled out before testing.
What are confounders?
This minimum body temperature must be met before brain death testing can proceed.
What is ≥ 36°C or 96.8°F?
This condition affects oxygen delivery to the brain and can make a patient appear unresponsive.
What is hypoxia?
What is hypotension?
This step formally confirms death and must be completed before any organ recovery process can begin.
What is documentation of the (brain death) determination?
What is declaration?
Separating the hospital’s role in determining death from the OPO’s role in donation protects this critical principle.
What is trust (or ethical integrity of the process)?
Acceptable alternates:
Brain death testing can only begin after these have been confirmed.
What are prerequisites?
At least 24 hours after reaching 36*C
What is the required wait time after rewarming before BDT in patient with hypothermia?
Brain death testing cannot proceed if confounders are present because findings could be this.
What is a reversible condition?
What is non-permanent?
This imagining study is the only recommended confirmatory test for pediatric patients.
What is cerebral blood flow (CBF)?
Brain death testing protects patients, families, and hospitals by separating medical determination of death from this process.
What is organ donation or organ procurement?