Ethical controversies at end of life after traumatic brain injury: Defining death and organ donation.

The article discusses the ethical ramifications of the concepts of brain death and the controversies associated with controlled donation following cardiac death organ transplantation. Several medical and legal definitions of death are presented, including loss of integration of the whole organism, loss of autonomy and loss of personhood. In the past, the use of several organs for transplantation has been difficult due to the damages incurred by the organs during the ischemic time between the time of cardiac arrest and organ reperfusion in the recipient.