# Schiavo: Is the cerebral cortex actually physically gone? How/why?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schiavo-is-the-cerebral-cortex-actually-physically-gone-how-why/295733>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 22, 2005, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schiavo-is-the-cerebral-cortex-actually-physically-gone-how-why/295733 "2005-03-22T17:01:14Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\
**Post date:** [March 22, 2005, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schiavo-is-the-cerebral-cortex-actually-physically-gone-how-why/295733/1 "2005-03-22T17:01:14Z")

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I saw some brain scans on the web (can’t find them now) which seemed to show that the cerebral cortex wasn’t just damaged, but actually not even there any more physically.

Is this true? If so, how and/or why would damaged brain tissue physically melt away?

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**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\
**Post date:** [March 22, 2005, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schiavo-is-the-cerebral-cortex-actually-physically-gone-how-why/295733/2 "2005-03-22T17:08:27Z")

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_Dead_ tissue “dissolves” and its constituents reabsorbed. The space previously occupied by the tissue is replaced by fluid (‘nature abhors a vacuum’).

A similar, but much less pronounced, phenomenon occurs in Alzheimer’s Disease.

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**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\
**Post date:** [March 22, 2005, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schiavo-is-the-cerebral-cortex-actually-physically-gone-how-why/295733/3 "2005-03-22T17:16:52Z")

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So, the ceb. cortex wasn’t simply damaged, but actually killed?

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**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\
**Post date:** [March 22, 2005, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schiavo-is-the-cerebral-cortex-actually-physically-gone-how-why/295733/4 "2005-03-22T17:18:50Z")

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In a chronic vegatative state, as time passes, the cerebral cortex will atrophy (shrink). The whorls one sees on a normal brain flatten and disappear. The brain actually gets softer and the tissue gradually disappears. I don’t know why, but I assume its a mechanism where in the body sees the unused (unusable) area as waste and takes back the protein to use elsewhere.  
However, eventually even the brainstem will deteriorate, leading to death, but that can take many years.

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**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\
**Post date:** [March 22, 2005, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schiavo-is-the-cerebral-cortex-actually-physically-gone-how-why/295733/5 "2005-03-22T19:17:56Z")

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> [@Revtim](#):
>
> So, the ceb. cortex wasn’t simply damaged, but actually killed?

Basically. If you deprive cells of oxygen, they die. If you deprive a tissue or organ of oxygen for an extended period, lots of cells die. My understanding is that that’s pretty much what brain damage _is_–killing enough cells to impair the function of the tissue/organ.

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**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\
**Post date:** [March 22, 2005, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schiavo-is-the-cerebral-cortex-actually-physically-gone-how-why/295733/6 "2005-03-22T20:02:12Z")

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Thanks all, makes more sense now.