No Detectable Electroencephalographic Activity After Clinical Declaration of Death Among Tibetan Buddhist Meditators in Apparent Tukdam, a Putative Postmortem Meditation State.

Recent EEG studies on the early postmortem interval that suggest the persistence of electrophysiological coherence and connectivity in the brain of animals and humans reinforce the need for further investigation of the relationship between the brain's activity and the dying process. Neuroscience is now in a position to empirically evaluate the extended process of dying and, more specifically, to investigate the possibility of brain activity following the cessation of cardiac and respiratory function. Under the direction of the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, research was conducted in India on a postmortem meditative state cultivated by some Tibetan Buddhist practitioners in which decomposition is putatively delayed. For all healthy baseline (HB) and postmortem (PM) subjects presented here, we collected resting state electroencephalographic data, mismatch negativity (MMN), and auditory brainstem response (ABR). In this study, we present HB data to demonstrate the feasibility of a sparse electrode EEG configuration to capture well-defined ERP waveforms from living subjects under very challenging field conditions. While living subjects displayed well-defined MMN and ABR responses, no recognizable EEG waveforms were discernable in any of the tukdam cases.

Is mercury in Tibetan Medicine toxic? Clinical, neurocognitive and biochemical results of an initial cross-sectional study.

Mercury an important therapeutic substance in Tibetan Medicine undergoes complex "detoxification" prior to inclusion in multi-ingredient formulas. In an initial cross-sectional study, patients taking Tibetan Medicine for various conditions were evaluated for mercury toxicity. Two groups were identified: Group 1, patients taking " Tsothel" the most important detoxified mercury preparation and Group 2, patients taking other mercury preparations or mercury free Tibetan Medicine. Atomic fluorescence spectrometry of Tibetan Medicine showed mercury consumption 130 µg/kg/day (Group 1) and 30 µg/kg/day (Group 2) ( P ≤ 0.001), levels above EPA (RfDs) suggested threshold (0.3 µg/kg /day) for oral chronic exposure. Mean duration of Tibetan Medicine treatment was 9 ± 17 months (range 3-116) (Group 1) and 5 ± 1.96 months (range 1-114) (Group 2) (NS) with cumulative days of mercury containing Tibetan Medicine, 764 days ± 1214 (range 135-7330) vs. 103 days ± 111 (range 0-426), respectively ( P ≤ 0.001). Comparison of treatment groups with healthy referents (Group 3) not taking Tibetan Medicine showed no significant differences in prevalence of 23 non-specific symptoms of mercury toxicity, abnormal neurological, cardiovascular and dental findings and no correlation with mercury exposure variables; consumption, cumulative treatment days, blood/ urine Hg. Liver and renal function tests in treatment groups were not significantly increased compared to referents, with mean urine Beta2 Microglobulin within the normal range and not significantly associated with Hg exposure variables after correcting for confounding variables. Neurocognitive testing showed no significant intergroup differences for Wechsler Memory Scale, Grooved Pegboard, Visual Retention, but Group1 scores were better for Mini-Mental, Brief Word Learning, Verbal Fluency after correcting for confounding variables. These results suggest mercury containing Tibetan Medicine does not have appreciable adverse effects and may exert a possible beneficial effect on neurocognitive function. Since evidence of mercury as a toxic heavy metal, however, is well known, further analysis of literature on mercury use in other Asian traditional systems is highly suggested prior to further studies.

Tibetan medicine for cancer: an overview and review of case studies.

INTRODUCTION: Tibetan medicine (TM) is a whole systems medical approach that has had growing interest in the West. However, minimal research, particularly with cancer, has been conducted. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of TM and describe a clinical case review study to obtain preliminary evidence of TM's safety and effect on patients treated for cancer or hematologic disorders. METHODS: A retrospective case review was conducted in India and cases met the following inclusion criteria: (a) confirmed diagnosis of cancer or hematologic disorder by standard Western biomedical diagnostic tests, (b) either treated exclusively with TM or received insufficient Western treatment followed by TM and (c) were in remission or had stable disease at least 2 years after start of TM. RESULTS: Three cases were identified, 1 solid tumor and 2 hematologic diseases: Case 1--poorly to moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma of the stomach, positive lymph nodes and mucosal infiltration, with clear scans and excellent quality of life 29 months later ; Case 2--chronic myelogenous leukemia with normalization of hematologic labs within 3 months of starting TM and stable 4 years later; and Case 3--red cell aplasia improved significantly and reversed dependence on blood transfusions with TM. None of the cases experienced demonstrable adverse effects from TM. CONCLUSIONS: This limited case review found TM to be safe and have positive effects on quality of life and disease regression and remission in patients with cancer and blood disorders. Further exploration and investigation using rigorous methods is warranted.