Evaluation of Brain Death Cases in Intensive Care Units: A 6-Year Retrospective Study

Purpose: Careful monitoring of Brain death (BD) cases in intensive care units (ICUs) is essential for effective organ donation. Material and Method: This study was carried out by examining the archives of the BD cases that were occurred in the ICUs between 01.01.2012 and 01.01.2018 at xxxxxxx Hospital. Results: Thirty BD cases were detected. All cases admitted to the emergency department Six (20%) patients were transferred to other services after first referral and five patients (16.6%) were transported to the operating room before they arrived in ICU. The mean age of the cases was 46.9 (18-75). Half of the patients (50%) were admitted to the ICU due to subarachnoid hemorrhage. Apnea test was performed to diagnose for all cases, but it could not be completed in three cases. In all cases (100%) diagnosed clinically, a supportive test was used to confirm the diagnosis. Fourteen cases (46.6%) were approved by their family for donation but 12 cases were donors. The most common reason for refusal was the “indecisiveness among family members” and “ do not want the disruption of the body’s integrity”. Conclusion: In our country, we believe that the determination of cadaver-induced donor loss areas and the restructuring of educational models for the national organ donation system will contribute greatly to the donation of cadavers