title: International guideline development for the determination of death.
abstract: METHODS
  This report summarizes the results of the first phase in the development of international guidelines for death determination, focusing on the biology of death and the dying process, developed by an invitational forum of international content experts and representatives of a number of professional societies.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Precise terminology was developed in order to improve clarity in death discussion and debate. Critical events in the physiological sequences leading to cessation of neurological and/or circulatory function were constructed. It was agreed that death determination is primarily clinical and recommendations for preconditions, confounding factors, minimum clinical standards and additional testing were made. A single operational definition of human death was developed: 'the permanent loss of capacity for consciousness and all brainstem functions, as a consequence of permanent cessation of circulation or catastrophic brain injury'. In order to complete the project, in the next phase, a broader group of international stakeholders will develop clinical practice guidelines, based on comprehensive reviews and grading of the existing evidence.
authors.affiliation: Canadian Blood Services and Division of Critical Care, Montreal Children's Hospital, McGill University Health Centre, 2300 Tupper Street room C-806, Montreal, QC, H3H 1P3, Canada, sam.shemie@mcgill.ca.
authors.forename: Sam D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Shemie
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hornby
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Baker
authors.forename: Jeanne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Teitelbaum
authors.forename: Sylvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Torrance
authors.forename: Kimberly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Young
authors.forename: Alexander M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Capron
authors.forename: James L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Bernat
authors.forename: Luc
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Noel
mesh_terms: D003643:Death; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic