Radiological approach to brain death.

Authors

T Busquier Cerdán, D de Araújo Martins-Romêo, M Rodríguez Yanes, P Galván Vázquez, A Moreno Ballesteros

Published in

Radiologia. Volume 68. Issue 5. Pages 501707. Epub Jul 23, 2026.

Abstract

Brain death is a complex clinical diagnosis with significant medical and legal implications that sometimes requires the use of ancillary tests to confirm the absence of electrical activity or cerebral blood flow (CBF). Among the ancillary tests used to assess CBF are: transcranial Doppler ultrasound, digital subtraction cerebral angiography, CT angiography (CTA), MR angiography, and scintigraphy. This article reviews these techniques, with particular emphasis on CTA, its multiphase protocol, the imaging findings that support the diagnosis of brain death, recommendations for radiology report writing, and potential pitfalls in interpretation. We also review specific considerations for paediatric patients and the discrepancies between international societies on the use of ancillary tests both in adults and children.

PMID:
42711010
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 09 Sep 2026.

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