“Brain Death” and dead donor rule Discussion and proposals on the thesis of Truog

Abstract

The introduction in 1968 by the “ad hoc” Harvard committee of the concept of “Brain Death” gave birth to the worldwide diffusion of organ transplantation. Recently “Total Brain Failure” has been proposed as preferred term, instead of “Brain Death”, by the President’s Council on Bioethics.

The concepts of “brain death” and of “dead donor rule” remain the ethical and moral support of organ transplantation. However both criteria has been questioned, either separately or all together, by many authors and particularly by Dr. Robert D. Truog.