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Related Experiment Videos

Coordinated expression in chronically unconscious persons

F Plum1, N Schiff, U Ribary

  • 1Cornell University Medical College, New York Presbyterian Hospital, NY 10021, USA.

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences
|December 17, 1998
PubMed
Summary
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Patients in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) may show isolated brain activity, but this does not indicate consciousness. Severely damaged brains can express modular functions without generating awareness.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Neurology
  • Cognitive Science

Background:

  • Persistent vegetative state (PVS) is characterized by wakefulness without awareness.
  • Previous studies show global cerebral glucose metabolism is severely reduced in PVS patients.
  • Rare reports suggest isolated cognitive functions in some PVS patients raise questions about awareness versus automatic behavior.

Observation:

  • Three PVS patients (6 months to 20 years post-onset) were evaluated using magnetometry (MEG), PET, MRI, and EEG.
  • Clinical examinations and monitoring revealed no cognitive interaction.
  • Patients exhibited fragmented behaviors: isolated words, non-purposeful movements, and emotional responses.

Findings:

  • All patients had global metabolism <50% of normal.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Patient 1 showed preserved metabolism and MEG activation in left hemisphere language areas.
  • Patient 2 had increased metabolism in frontal poles and subcortical structures.
  • Patient 3 displayed severe atrophy with preserved sensory processing indicated by MEG, despite diffuse metabolic reduction.

    • Implications:

    • Severely damaged brains can exhibit surviving modular functions without integrated processes necessary for consciousness.
    • Fragmentary neuropsychological activity from isolated modules is insufficient to generate consciousness.
    • This research refines our understanding of brain function and consciousness in disorders of consciousness.