What is a vegetative state?
The vegetative state is a condition in which someone is awake but unconscious. People usually emerge from a coma to a vegetative state because their brains are slowly recovering from the injury and becoming more alert and aware. From the vegetative state, the patient can move to a minimally conscious state and then to a full consciousness. Sometimes, however, patients do not recover from a vegetative state because their brains are too seriously damaged. When the patient is in a vegetative state, no higher brain function is observed, but the patient's brain strain is intact. This means that the patient has some basic reflexes and can usually breathe independently, but cannot communicate, understand the spoken language or to participate in the environment.
The diagnostics of the vegetative state is complicated and incorrect diagnosis. This is extremely problematic because the patient's diagnosis can literally be the difference between life and death. One study showed people in the allegedly vegetative state whoFor example, they could learn, which meant that their higher brain functions were not only intact but also work. There may be several tests for screening patients who have experienced brain injuries to determine their level of consciousness, but the test results are not always completely reliable; For example, patients in the 2009 study above have been diagnosed and confirmed as in a vegetative condition, despite the fact that this was not the case.
When a patient remains in this condition for more than a month, the term "persistent vegetative condition" may be used to describe the patient. It is possible to recover after more than a month, but the chances are becoming even slimmer over time. After a year, more, the patient is said to be in a permanent vegetative condition. However, this is also a bit incorrect, as cases where patients have recovered from the allegedly permanent vegetative condition.
Patients in this condition have sleep and wake -up cycles, can open their eyes, laugh, cry or smile and willReact to the unpleasant impulses. However, they are not aware of their surrounding environment. They also require nursing support, because while they can breathe themselves, they cannot feed and have difficulty with most daily tasks.
When someone experiences brain injuries that results in supposed comic, vegetative condition or at least conscious condition, it is important that the patient defends. During the diagnosis, it is important to be very thorough to confirm that it is correct, and avoiding a situation such as an incorrect diagnosis of someone with syndrome in which the patient is fully awake and aware of. It is also important to realize that none of these conditions is equivalent to the death of the brain.