[The criteria for determining brain death in children]

The American Committee, followed by the British, consisting of experts in various fields, in 1968 and 1976, respectively, reached the following consensus: "If a brain stem is dead, a brain is dead, if a brain is dead, a person is dead..." In the last few years, definition of brain death was necessary due to organ transplantation. Most of criteria verifying brain death do not include the specific determinants of brain death in children. This paper specifies the most up-to-date guidelines for diagnosis of brain death in children of various ages.