Abstract

Patients with disorders of consciousness have been at the heart of some of the most heated debates on so-called right-to-die cases such as the Terri Schiavo case. People with DOCs occupy a spectrum of disorders from coma to the minimally conscious state. Recent advances in neuroscience have led to insights on the mechanism of these disorders as well as to the revelation that some patients might have a greater degree of awareness than previously believed. These scientific developments have paralleled long-term clinical follow-ups, which have also shown more positive outcomes than expected.