Decorticate Posturing End Of Life
The arms are bent in toward the body and the wrists and fingers are bent and held on the chest.
Decorticate posturing end of life. Decorticate posture is characterized by a stiff body straight legs and clenched fists. For these and other reasons brain death is widely accepted albeit with rare exceptions as the end of human life. On the other hand the cat may drink water to excess.
Decerebrate posture is characterized by rigid limbs pointed toes and a backward tilt to the head and neck. The body is telling the heart and lungs that it needs more oxygen and this can produce fear and anxiety. With the cessation of breathing by the machine the body will immediately start to build up metabolic waste of carton dioxide co2 in the blood.
The dead brain gives no response. And there are changes on the emotional and spiritual level as well in which the dying person lets go of the body and the material world. There are physical changes that take place as the body begins to shut down its regular functions.
The patient is temporarily removed from life support the ventilator. Towards end of life most people begin to experience changes in breathing. Clinically speaking posturing is due to brain damage.
Richard scott professor emeritus in the department of sociology shares a very personal story of the last stages of life of his beloved brother charles scott. Posturing was associated with age or 3 years 48 1 vs 35 8 p 0 01 and features of raised intracranial pressure on funduscopy adjusted or 2 1 95 ci 1 2 3 7 p 0 009 but not other markers of severity of disease. When the co2 level reaches a level of 55 mm hg the active brain will cause the patient to breathe spontaneously.
Decorticate posturing occurred in 80 decerebrate in 61 and opisthotonic posturing in 22 patients. There is not presently a similar consensus of opinion and reaction regarding pvs. Acute brain damage can manifest as posturing but at the end of life in a known disease trajectory it would be unlikely but possible particularly with brain ca or mets.