Hello, Terry Schiavo

Jillian Bandes | February 04, 2010 9:54 AM

This study out today is terrifying, fascinating, and should change the way we approach end-of-life care. It claims that some people in vegetative states have full control of their minds, without any control of their bodies

— and that we had no way of knowing this until now.

Standard tests can't reveal some parts of vegetative patients' brain function, which was recently discovered with the use of sophisticated brain scans. When asked questions about everyday activities, the scans showed responsiveness that was similar to functioning patients' scans. Some vegetative patients were even able to communicate this way.