What is a conscious coma?

Coma can be defined as a state of depressed consciousness where a person is unresponsive to the outside world. Consciousness relies on the cerebral hemispheres interacting with an area of the brain stem called the ascending reticular activating system. Injury to these areas causes decreased consciousness or coma.

Is consciousness a defining property of living organisms?

All organisms (from the prokaryotes to the most complex eukaryotes) have sense of consciousness that can sense and respond to environmental stimuli. So, consciousness is considered as the defining property of all living organisms.

Is there a difference between brain dead and no brain activity?

No brain function exists. Brain death results from swelling in the brain; blood flow in the brain ceases and without blood to oxygenate the cells, the tissue dies. It is irreversible. Once brain tissue dies, there is nothing that can be done to heal it.

Does Consciousness Exist after death?

According to Fenwick, so it is with consciousness. Just because the organ that filters, perceives, and interprets it dies does not mean the phenomenon itself ceases to exist. It only ceases to be in the now-dead brain but continues to exist independently of the brain as an external property of the universe itself.

Is consciousness a property of life?

This property is (arguably) necessary, but not sufficient, for life — things can be ‘conscious’ (respond to stimuli) but not be alive, but they can’t be alive if they don’t respond to stimuli. This property is more typically called irritability. The Khan Academy article on “What is Life?”

Do you see signs of consciousness in a coma?

But these signs of consciousness are not always evident, nor do we see them in every patient. A patient who awakens from a coma may also develop a so-called locked-in syndrome, being completely conscious but paralyzed and unable to communicate, except through eye blinks.

Is consciousness an emergent property of the brain?

The prevailing consensus in neuroscience is that consciousness is an emergent property of the brain and its metabolism. When the brain dies, the mind and consciousness of the being to whom that brain belonged ceases to exist. In other words, without a brain, there can be no consciousness.