A new case report describes how a brain-dead woman was able to carry a fetus almost to term before the healthy baby was eventually delivered by cesarean section. Though similar incidents are rare, a recent systematic review uncovered 35 examples of pregnant women becoming brain-dead, 27 of which ended with a live birth, including three vaginal deliveries.
Describing the latest case, researchers from the University of Florida explain that the 31-year-old woman was 22 weeks pregnant when she presented to a clinic with a severe headache. Soon afterwards, she experienced “seizure-like activity,” before becoming unresponsive.
“Scan findings met the nuclear medicine criteria for ‘brain death’ and the patient was declared dead on the day of admission,” write the study authors. Further analyses revealed that the woman had suffered a bleed on the brain. Read the full story here 
