My brother has been in coma for going on 4months now!

He is 26years old and has had dialysis since he was 7....in August 2012 he was in the hospital & he coded but with him being in there so close they were able to get to him fast....he was in a coma for 10 days the 1st time and woke up with mild injury....he was released from the hospital unable to walk but he could talk a little bit..he was just very weak, that sunday after he was released the same thing happened but this time he was at home and it was long & hard..had to wait for the EMS which took a while..my brother went 15minutes without oxygen to his brain....that was August 19th 2012..August 23 he was declared Brain Dead...its going on January 2013..doctor said that he most likely will not wake up out of his coma & if he does he will be completely brain dead...my mom has hope & i would like to know his life expectancy if he does not wake up out of this coma & if he was too..how long will we have with him? Is a nursing home good for him to try to recover? How long should we give him before we let him go?

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi!
I am so sorry to hear about your brother. If your brother was diagnosed as ‘brain dead’ then I sorry but chances of recovery are very minimal, unless there is a miracle. You need to discuss this with his treating doctors. If they feel that he will not recover from his present state where he is being maintained through external means (like a ventilator), then it is best to let go. The decision to hook a patient off the ventilator has to come from the patient’s immediate relative after the treating doctor or a panel of doctors feels that nothing more can be done. If in doubt, you could ask another neurologist’s opinion who can examine your brother. Take care!

[concerned821]

My brother is in a coma and i would like to know why hes been having breathing situation is it maybe him trying to come out of his coma like trying to wake up? Signed concerned

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi!
I am sorry to hear about your brother. If your brother has been on ventilator, then the healthcare workers make adjustments in the machine if they see a voluntary effort by the patient. Slowly the machine is weaned off if there is a sustained effort by the patient and it is maintaining the oxygen level in the body. The other possibility is that he is not on ventilator but breathing on his own. This is a less likely situation. But if he is gasping then this needs to be monitored in an ICU. Take care!

The medical advice given should not be considered a substitute for medical care provided by a doctor who can examine you. The advice may not be completely correct for you as the doctor cannot examine you and does not know your complete medical history. Hence this reply to your post should only be considered as a guiding line and you must consult your doctor at the earliest for your medical problem.