Guidelines and standards for the study of death and recalled experiences of death--a multidisciplinary consensus statement and proposed future directions.

An inadvertent consequence of advances in stem cell research, neuroscience, and resuscitation science has been to enable scientific insights regarding what happens to the human brain in relation to death. The scientific exploration of death is in large part possible due to the recognition that brain cells are more resilient to the effects of anoxia than assumed. Hence, brain cells become irreversibly damaged and "die" over hours to days postmortem. Resuscitation science has enabled life to be restored to millions of people after their hearts had stopped. These survivors have described a unique set of recollections in relation to death that appear universal. We review the literature, with a focus on death, the recalled experiences in relation to cardiac arrest, post-intensive care syndrome, and related phenomena that provide insights into potential mechanisms, ethical implications, and methodologic considerations for systematic investigation. We also identify issues and controversies related to the study of consciousness and the recalled experience of cardiac arrest and death in subjects who have been in a coma, with a view to standardize and facilitate future research.

Internalized HIV Stigma and Mindfulness: Associations With PTSD Symptom Severity in Trauma-Exposed Adults With HIV/AIDS.

Rates of both traumatic event exposure and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; 22%-54%) are disproportionately elevated among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA). Trauma and related psychopathology significantly affect quality of life and disease management in this patient population. The current study examined associations between internalized HIV stigma, mindfulness skills, and the severity of PTSD symptoms in trauma-exposed PLHA. Participants included 137 PLHA (14.6% female; Mage = 48.94, SD = 8.89) who reported experiencing on average, five (SD = 2.67) traumatic events; 34% met diagnostic criteria for PTSD. Results indicate that after controlling for sex, age, education, and number of traumatic events, internalized HIV stigma was positively related to overall PTSD symptom severity (ß = .16, p < .05) and severity of re-experiencing (ß = .19, p < .05) and hyper-arousal (ß = .16, p = .05), but not avoidance, PTSD symptom clusters. Among the mindfulness facets measured, acting with awareness was uniquely negatively related to the overall severity of PTSD symptoms (ß = -.25, p < .01) and the severity of re-experiencing (ß = -.25, p < .05), avoidance (ß = -.25, p < .05), and hyper-arousal (ß = -.29, p < .01) PTSD symptom clusters. These effects were observed after accounting for covariates and shared variance with other mindfulness facets. Theoretically, the present findings suggest that internalized HIV stigma may serve as a vulnerability factor for the severity of certain PTSD symptoms, whereas acting with awareness may function as a protective or resiliency factor for the severity of PTSD symptoms. Implications for the treatment of trauma-exposed PLHA are discussed.

Neuromyelitis optica presenting with psychiatric symptoms and catatonia: a case report.

Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is an aggressive disease characteristically affecting the spinal cord and optic nerves that has recently been differentiated from multiple sclerosis. We present a case of a 16-year-old Antiguan female previously diagnosed with NMO who presented with a 1-week history of confusion and agitation. She had symptoms of psychosis, including delusional thinking and auditory and visual hallucinations, and scored 11/23 on the Bush-Francis Catatonia Scale. This case demonstrates an NMO exacerbation that presented with psychotic symptoms and catatonia.

Routine, empathic and compassionate patient care: definitions, development, obstacles, education and beneficiaries.

RATIONALE: We believe that this study represents an innovative approach to clarifying the definitions of routine, empathic and compassionate health care, as well as of sympathy. We emphasize the importance of affective empathy and its intensification in the context of patient suffering (compassion), without abandoning the ideal of clinical equanimity. METHODS: We develop a pedagogical model for clinicians and trainees who are weaker in their empathic skills that includes four levels of growth. We clarify representative obstacles to empathic and compassionate care in education and clinical practice. We summarize the four beneficiaries of empathic and compassionate care (clinicians, patients, trainees, institutions). We suggest areas for future research, including the development of a compassion scale and conclude with a statement on how the conceptual and professional confusion we address adversely impacts patients and trainees. The article represents the consensus work of a group of health care professionals and students at Stony Brook University Hospital and School of Medicine who have been engaged in this project for several years through the Center for Medical Humanities, Compassionate Care, and Bioethics, established in August of 2008. CONCLUSIONS: We discern a shift away from concepts of clinical empathy and compassionate care that deny a significant place for an affective component and that idealize 'detachment'.