Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
February 18, 2022
Sam Parnia, Stephen G. Post, Matthew T. Lee et al.
68 citations
Advances in stem cell research, neuroscience, and resuscitation science have enabled scientific insights into what happens to the human brain in relation to death. Brain cells are more resilient to anoxia than previously assumed, becoming irreversibly damaged over hours to days postmortem. Resuscitation science has restored life to millions after cardiac arrest, and survivors describe a universal set of recollections related to death. This review examines death, recalled experiences during cardiac arrest, post-intensive care syndrome, and related phenomena, discussing potential mechanisms, ethical implications, and methodological considerations. It also addresses controversies in studying consciousness and recalled experiences of cardiac arrest and death in comatose subjects to standardize future research.
Resuscitation
October 1, 2023
Sam Parnia, Tara Keshavarz Shirazi, Jignesh Patel et al.
64 citations
During cardiac arrest and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), some patients show signs of consciousness and cognitive activity, including brain activity on EEG that resembles normal waking patterns despite severe oxygen deprivation. In a study of 567 in-hospital cardiac arrests, 11 of 28 survivors interviewed reported memories or perceptions suggesting consciousness during CPR. Four categories of experiences emerged: CPR-induced consciousness, post-resuscitation awareness, dream-like experiences, and transcendent recalled experience of death (RED). A separate group of 126 community survivors reinforced these categories and added delusions. Normal EEG activity (delta, theta, alpha) appeared for up to 35–60 minutes into CPR even with low cerebral oxygenation, suggesting that a network-level cognitive activity and lucidity may occur during cardiac arrest.
Journal of cardiothoracic surgery
May 27, 2025
Joshua Ross, Thomas Jan, Deane Smith et al.
1 citation
A spectrum of consciousness and awareness, including signs of implicit learning and electrocortical biomarkers, may be present during deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA), despite the absence of visible signs of consciousness. In a prospective study across 10 hospitals with 36 DHCA patients, 29 had a tablet set up to deliver audiovisual stimuli. All had EEG and NIRS monitoring, but only 9 had usable EEG data. Delta EEG waves were observed during circulatory arrest in 3 of those 9 patients. None had explicit recall of the three fruit names, but 3 of 36 correctly guessed them, suggesting implicit learning, and 3 recalled other memories, including themes of a death experience. This may help explain negative psychological outcomes in cardiac arrest survivors.