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Updated: May 28, 2026

SECONDs Administration Guidelines: A Fast Tool to Assess Consciousness in Brain-injured Patients
Published on: February 6, 2021
The vegetative and minimally conscious states: diagnosis, prognosis and treatment
Ron Hirschberg1, Joseph T Giacino
1Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Abstract:
Severe acquired brain injury has profound impact on alertness, cognition, and behavior. Among those who survive the initial injury, a significant minority fail to fully recover self and environmental awareness, and go on to experience prolonged disorders of consciousness (DOC) that can last a lifetime. Although there are no standards of care to guide clinical management, a growing body of empirical evidence is beginning to accrue to inform clinical decision making. In this article, we review the state of the science as it pertains to diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of patients with DOC.
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