ABSTRACT

We aimed to discuss organ transplantation of brain death legal cases due to high benefits of patient with forensic and legal points of view.

Case: 16 years old, entubated male patient who was intoxi-cated from inhalation of bottled gas with unconsciousness, bilateral fix-dilated pupils and GCS:3 was admitted to Mersin University Faculty of Medicine and hospitalized in intensive care unit. Subarachnoidal hemarrogie and brain edema were detected in Computerized Cerebral Tomograpy and given med-ical teraphy. But there was no answer to the treathment and the family was given consent of organ transplantation. Brain death was occured in 04.18.2007 and the case is consulted with our Department of Forensic Medicine. After discussing the case with public attorney we concluded that the organs which was planned to be transplantated had no influence on cause of death and the medicolegal autopsy can performed after transplanta-tion operation. The public attorney approved the procedure and the medicolegal autopsy was performed after operation.

There are serious problems in organ transplantation for legal cases. Sheduling of legal notification and pastmortem examination is not clear in such cases. It’s not obvious that these pro-cedures must before or after transplantation operation. The article 11 of the law code numbered 2238 describes the priori-ty of urgent transplantation for patient survive due to the prin-ciple of high benefits of the patient. The legal cases who becomes doneur for organ tranplantation must be consulted and evaluated with Forensic Medicine Departments.

Keywords: Brain death, organ transplantation, legal case