X-Message-Number: 25870
From: "James Clement" <>
Subject: Schiavo
Date: Wed, 23 Mar 2005 13:23:04 -0500

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Living in Florida, we've been hearing about the Schiavo case for a while.  The 
following article from the Orlando Sentinel answers a few of the questions that 
have been raised on Cryonet.


From what I understand, in the absence of a living will, the Court tried to find
out what her intention would have been, as well as appointing a guardian to 
represent her before the Court.  In both circumstances, the Court found that she
should be allowed to die.  To me, the main question is whether we as Cryonauts 
want the precedent of the Religious Right using the Federal Gov't to override a 
guardian's judgment (in our case the guardian could be pleading for 
life-extension or for cryopreservation).  IMHO, Politicians cannot be counted on
to protect our rights, they are just following their own ethics or what they 
perceive will get them reelected.  Florida is full of Right-to-Lifers and their 
pandering politicians, who are looking for any opportunity to prove that "all 
human life is sacred" and therefore must be protected by the Gov't (especially 
when it comes to unborn fetuses).  To allow Schiavo to die would be to set 
another precedent against their principles, hence the big effort by Jeb & George
W.  These are the same people and politicians who oppose life extension and 
embryonic stem cell research.


For those of you who are thinking that this intervention by the Congress may 
help protect them from getting life support turned off - I suggest you at least 
carry around a laminated miniature living will in your wallet or purse 
instructing that you WANT EVERY EFFORT TO PRESERVE YOUR LIFE, AND THAT YOU DO 
NOT WANT A BRAIN AUTOPSY UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE!   


Best regards,
James

Questions, answers about Schiavo

By Robyn Shelton

The Orlando Sentinel



ORLANDO, Fla. - Here are answers to some commonly asked questions about the 
Terri Schiavo case:

Q: What is a "persistent vegetative state," and how is it diagnosed?


A: People in such a state have lost all higher brain function, including the 
ability to think, experience emotions and understand the world around them. They
continue to sleep and wake, open their eyes, breathe on the their own and may 
make noises and facial expressions.


Their brain stems -- the portion of the brain that controls basic functions such
as heartbeat and breathing -- continue to function.


People in a persistent vegetative state do not track objects with their eyes, 
blink on command or respond consistently to cues in the environment. Such a 
state over a period of time is considered persistent.


Doctors who examine the same patient can reach different conclusions, but time 
is the best arbiter. Schiavo has been in this state for 15 years.


Q: Schiavo appears to respond to her mother in a video released by the family. 
Her father said she smiled Monday when he told her that her feeding tube soon 
could be reinserted. Doesn't that show that she is not in a persistent 
vegetative state?


A: Court-appointed physicians have not been able to document a consistent, 
predictable response from Schiavo that would indicate that she is aware of her 
surroundings.

Q: Could new technology provide more insight into Schiavo's condition?


A: Functional magnetic resonance imaging tracks blood flow to regions of the 
brain while a person performs certain tasks, but it is not a conclusive test.


Schiavo has undergone diagnostic tests, including CT scans and EEGs, which 
showed her brain's electrical function to be flat, according to court records. 
Brain scans show that the cerebral cortex, responsible for higher thinking, has 
suffered severe atrophy and been replaced by liquid.


Q: Schiavo's parents and a neurologist who examined her several years ago, Dr. 
William Hammesfahr, say she could get better with therapy. Would she be helped 
by rehabilitation?


A: Other doctors have concluded that she would not improve with rehabilitation, 
and attempts at therapy have had no effect.


Schiavo underwent more than three years of rehabilitative therapy after her 
collapse in 1990, and her husband took her to a California center in late 1990 
to have an experimental device implanted in her brain in hopes of stimulating 
activity.


According to a court-appointed guardian who reviewed the medical information for
her case in 2003, there is no reason to believe that she can recover.


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