The Supreme Court directed the head of the department of neurology at AIIMS, New Delhi, to constitute a team of three experts in the field of neurology or neurosurgery to examine whether cerebral angiogram and EEG provide a more reliable way to determine brain death. (File Photo)

In a significant order, the Supreme Court has directed the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to set up a panel of three neurology or neurosurgery experts to examine whether methods like cerebral angiogram and electroencephalogram (EEG), as suggested by Kerala-based doctor and activist S Ganapathy, are better modes to determine if a person is brain dead than the currently used apnea test.

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Metha, which concluded that concerns expressed by the medical profession “prima facie, do carry a ring of truth,” said that given the “complexities” of the issue, which calls for “specialised medical expertise”, it would be appropriate to have the expert view of AIIMS to examine it and…