The autopsy of Terri Schiavo may not provide a definitive answer to the most pressing question about her medical condition: Did some glimmer of meaningful human consciousness remain?
In the coming weeks, doctors will weigh Schiavo's brain to gauge how much it had atrophied in the 15 years since a heart attack cut off the blood supply for about 5 crucial minutes. They will examine thin slices of tissue under a microscope and look for the glial cells that are the hallmark of brain damage.
They will also pay close attention to the thalamus, the mass of neurons in the center of the brain that processes information from the outside world. If the connections between the thalamus and the outer brain have wasted away, it would have been impossible for Schiavo to comprehend her situation, neurologists said Thursday.
Terri Schiavo's husband, Michael, arranged to have an autopsy performed to try to dispel persistent rumors that he was hiding information about his wife's medical condition, said his attorney, George J. Felos. The medical examiner for Pinellas County, where Terri Schiavo spent her last days in hospice care, will perform the autopsy.
Based on a single image from a 2002 CT scan of Schiavo's brain released by Felos, doctors said it was probable that pathologists would find severe damage.
But for some, even proof of widespread brain damage may not settle the question of whether she was able to feel pain, recognize her mother's voice or have any awareness.
For all the advances of medical science, measuring consciousness can still be an uncertain proposition. Evaluating a patient from bedside cannot provide a definitive view of the brain's inner workings. Even looking at the brain itself -- through advanced medical scanning devices and direct observation after death -- can provide only clues to the state of a mind.
The physical state of a brain is no clear evidence of consciousness. Patients can have relatively normal-looking brains, yet suffer from profound brain damage, said Dr. Martin A. Samuels, chairman of the department of neurology at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
"The brain can be functionally abnormal and structurally normal," Samuels said.
The autopsy will not overrule the long-standing diagnosis that the 41-year-old Florida woman was in a persistent vegetative state.
