Doctor Says Examination Changed His Mind (Terri may not be PVS, says Mayo Clinic neurologist)

LATimes ^ | March 24 05 | LATimes

[churchillbuff]

Dr. William P. Cheshire, a Mayo Clinic neurologist and bioethicist, stepped into Terri Schiavo's hospice room three weeks ago and was overcome by "the distinct sense of the presence of a living human being who seems at some level to be aware of some things around her."

[snip]...In his affidavit, Cheshire wrote that he came into the case believing that it was "ethically permissible" to withdraw Schiavo's feeding tube.

But during his evaluation, he began to notice what he interpreted as faint signs of consciousness.

For example, he wrote, "her facial expression brightens and she smiles in response to the voice of familiar persons such as her parents." When piano music is playing, "she lifts her eyebrows, smiles, and even laughs."

During Cheshire's visit to her bedside, she turned her head to look directly at his face, then held his gaze for about 30 seconds, he wrote.

Schiavo cannot speak, but Cheshire wrote that he discerned differences in her monosyllabic utterances, cooing at some points or making guttural sounds when annoyed. These vocalizations could well be signs of "emotional thought within her brain," he wrote.

He also pointed to a videotape of an examination by Hammesfahr in 2002. Schiavo showed "signs of discomfort" during a test that involved applying a sharp piece of wood to her back.

[churchillbuff]

ping

[stlnative]

Cheshire's Affidavit in Full

http://www.nationalreview.com/pdf/Affidavit.pdf

[churchillbuff]

gracias

[gulfcoast6]

These folks are hell bent on putting this girl to death and listen carefully, it goes further than just her. These folks have a agenda big time.

[churchillbuff]

ping

[jazzlite]

I am an American who cannot sleep because of the travesty of all this. My sister, who is a retired ICU nurse of 25 years and still a home health nurse in a large city, called me last night, extremely upset..She had been home all day watching everything concerning Terri Schiavo..She has cared for many patients like this and she told me that Terri is NOT in a permanent vegetative state. It is not just doctors who know these things. Long time, experienced nurses know, too. This has come down to judicial tyranny and this nation had better reset the powers to what they were meant to be. Liberals have used the courts to rule America over our elected officials for too long. Of course, they will do anything to keep the tyranny they now have. It must not continue if we want freedom to prevail. This is a power struggle between the rule of law and morality..We had better pray that morality wins because Hitler used the rule of law to commit the greatest crime in all of history.

[Lexinom]

You are not alone.

I've seen this coming for years with abortion-on-demand, and society's cavalier attitude about it.

This is the next logical progression. The common pattern is the strong exterting their will over the weak for gain.

First, they came for the babies,
but I said nothing, for I was not a baby
Then they came for the disabled
but I said nothing, for I was not disabled
Then they came for me,
and I screamed and begged for mercy, by they showed none.

[sphinx]

For example, he wrote, "her facial expression brightens and she smiles in response to the voice of familiar persons such as her parents." When piano music is playing, "she lifts her eyebrows, smiles, and even laughs." During Cheshire's visit to her bedside, she turned her head to look directly at his face, then held his gaze for about 30 seconds, he wrote. Schiavo cannot speak, but Cheshire wrote that he discerned differences in her monosyllabic utterances, cooing at some points or making guttural sounds when annoyed. These vocalizations could well be signs of "emotional thought within her brain," he wrote.

According to the democrats, she's qualified to vote.

[Imaverygooddriver]

What gets me about the whole Terri Schiavo case is why is Jack Kevorkian in jail? His name has become the punchline of a joke now, when the fact of the matter is this was a man who wanted to end suffering in people who were going through tremendous painful deaths, and although many will not agree with what he did, he did it humanely. This Terri Schiavo deal on the other hand, they are actually killing this woman in the worst possible way anyone can die, by starvation and thirst. What the f**k is with that? They are treating her like she completely brain dead and on a heart and lung machine when that is so far away from the truth it`s ridiculous. Who the hell came up with this "remove her feeding tube" stuff? I mean even serial killers sentenced to death, before they "put them to sleep" they make sure they get the last meal in the cell. There`s a reason they do that, because hunger and thirst is the most painful thing the human body can experience and they do it now by tradition to show they are being "humane". My car broke down in Arizona once 30 years ago in the middle of nowhere, and I can tell you 12 hours without water I was thinking of ways to drink the radiator fluid by filtering it through my sock that`s how painful it is. I can`t even imagine the pain after days and days. This Terri Schiavo case is so bizarre, I am truly starting to wonder if the Commies really have taken over this country because that`s the only sick kind of culture that would do something like this. All those poor people getting arrested for Gods sake for trying to give her water!! Can you imagine?? Is this insane or what?? They are actually being arrested for trying to prevent a woman from dying of thirst!

[djreece]

. . . Hitler used the rule of law to commit the greatest crime in all of history.

Worth repeating!

[Imaverygooddriver]

Look at this, arresting a little boy for doing the right thing for trying to give water to a woman being forced to die of thirst. WHAT the hell is going on here?? Am I going insane here or have the Nazis and the Commies taken over and are back to doing their fun little experiments on invalids? This is truly something the Nazis would do. "Lets see how long the invalid can go without water"...Even if Terri made a video tape, made a written will saying "I do not want to live if I am brain damaged" WHY would you do it this way? For the love of God, give her a shot and put her to sleep, but not THIS way!

[Cobra64]

ok? more news... thanks

[republicangel]

Ok, I've read your post on 2 different threads this morning.

One reason it is not the same. There are new drugs out there on the market to help chemo patients keep food down that don't require the use of pot. After seeing a co-worker with a terminal case of cancer, she looks great since she's been able to eat. Her sister said the drug is more expensive than her chemo though. 4 pills per month. Even with insurance she has to pay hundreds for just those 4 pills.

[jazzlite]

You speak truth and logic, so absent from this tragedy..Kevorkian, also, assisted people who wanted to die. However, what he did was illegal because it was him putting people to death and not a court system..Horrendous crimes are committed when those in power are determined to keep that power, come "hell or high water."

[jazzlite]

"First, they came for the babies,
but I said nothing, for I was not a baby
Then they came for the disabled
but I said nothing, for I was not disabled
Then they came for me,
and I screamed and begged for mercy, but they showed none."

Thanks for the context of this..When people sit back in the face of wrong, they are placing themselves on the side of the wrong doers.

[gulfcoast6]

I ain't gonna get into this with you, I was a drug enforcement officer for 15 years so you surely don't want to try to tell me anything about marijuana.

[ravinson]

There are new drugs out there on the market to help chemo patients keep food down that don't require the use of pot.

Shouldn't that be up to doctors and patients to determine, not you or I or the federal government? And would you require someone to pay for a high priced pharmaceutical when an easily and inexpensively grown herb would do the job? Should cancer patients be required to impoverish themselves just to keep down food?

[jazzlite]

You are not going insane..I guarantee you that this policeman is probably saying to himself, "What am I doing!?" It is not incredible that any nation can slide into tyranny..I beg all of you..Please read about the Third Reich..You will recognize patterns..Those who fail to learn from history are bound to have to repeat it. Do we want that for the greatest nation that ever existed!