What is death? It’s the moment a human being ceases to exist. But when is that exactly?

We tend to think we know the answer, but what if the question is not that simple, especially when it comes to brain death?

In this episode of Bioethics Babe, pediatric neurologist Dr. Christopher DeCock examines one of the most important questions in medicine, law, and bioethics: What if the medical criteria used to declare someone brain dead are not actually proving what we think they are proving?

Current brain death determinations are largely based on clinical brain death criteria developed by the American Academy of Neurology, including coma, absence of brainstem reflexes, and apnea testing. But do these tests truly demonstrate the cessation of all brain function, as the law requires?

Dr. DeCock explains the philosophical and  ...