First, welcome to FR.
Thank you.
Second, if you are really an MD, then you should be able to discern what was in that autopsy report. It was widely reported that the autopsy confirmed the PVS diagnosis, which is a blatant lie, because the report stated that PVS is a clinical diagnosis and can only be determined in a live person. It stated that her condition upon death was consistent with either a PVS or MCS, and that it could not be determined which state Terri was in most recently.
I read the autopsy report, and agree completely that PVS is a clinical diagnosis. The autopsy report didn't quite say that her condition was consistent with either - it mentioned that while there is literature on what findings tend to accompany a diagnosis of PVS, there is no literature on findings characteristic of MCS. So a pathologist could not say it was consistent with MCS, as that information isn't known. He did say, "Neuropathologic examination of ... (Terri Schiavo's) brain - or any brain for that matter - cannot prove or disprove a diagnosis of persistent vegetative state or minimally conscious state." I also agree that there was a lot of misrepresentation of medical information, from both sides. Sadly, much of it continues to occur, sometimes from lack of knowledge, sometimes willful.
Third, I believe that had Michael continued therapy and rehab for Terri after 1993, that maybe she would have continued the progress she had already made. However, if one forgoes therapy, you as a doctor, would know quite well that it would be unlikely for anyone to recover, and in fact one would digress, as Terri did. It is unconscionable to withhold therapy, especially if you have just begged a jury for $$ to provide that therapy for the next 20 years, which is what Michael asked for.
If therapy for the first few years didn't help her - and my reading indicates it didn't - then I have to sadly conclude it would be unlikely to make a difference afterwards. If I missed documented improvement in the GAL report, or another credible source of medical information, please point me toward that information.
Also, I said early on that I don't agree with everything MS has done, so one shouldn't assume I approve of his every decision. I completely understand that people will have different opinions on such end of life decisions - it's a difficult issue. I respect those who argue the tube should not have been removed. It's the effort to distort or deny facts that disturbs me, which is why I stopped responding to certain posters on this thread.
Again, thanks for your welcome to FR.
If therapy for the first few years didn't help her - and my reading indicates it didn't - then I have to sadly conclude it would be unlikely to make a difference afterwards. If I missed documented improvement in the GAL report, or another credible source of medical information, please point me toward that information.
I apologize that I am working off a different computer than I was a year and more ago, and my files are on that hard drive, and that old pc is pretty much useless. However the documentation you are looking for is probably around on the 'net somewhere. They used to be on file at www.terrisfight.org, but I don't know if they still are.
First, almost everything that I've seen from Terri's medical records, (which are few on the 'net) do indicate that Terri was making progress with the different therapies. The nurse and therapist notes on the sides of her charts from Mediplex indicate that she was communicating with them. Michael had a diary, too, that was presented as evidence during the malpractice trial of Terri's making progress, and responding. Now if he was lying, then he was frauding the court. If he wasn't lying, then he has even more evil in him for stopping her therapy.
OK, I just checked with Terri's fight and the docs are no longer there. Somebody here will be able to help us find them, though. I remember that it was on some forms while she was at Mediplex in Bradenton. I think they were in pdf format. Bear with me. I will find them eventually.