Tuesday October 9, 2007
"Locked-in" Syndrome (coma vigilante)

Patient is a silent and unresponsive witness to everything that is happening" - from story of Nick Chisholm 1


Patient with Locked-in syndrome is a fully conscious person, but all the voluntary muscles of the body are completely paralyzed, other than those that control eye movement. Term was first introduced about 25 years ago by Plum and Posner with complete occlusion of the basilar artery. 3

Locked-In syndrome can be caused by stroke at the level of the basilar artery denying blood to the ventral part of the pons, among other causes. Any catastrophy involving ventral pons can cause this syndrome like massive stroke, traumatic head injury, ruptured aneurysm, pontine infarction after prolonged vertebrobasilar ischaemia, haemorrhage, tumor, central pontine myelinolysis, pontine abscess or postinfective polyneuropathy. As all of the nerve tracts responsible for voluntary movement pass through the ventral pons but fortunately or unfortunately, consciousness are above the level of the ventral pons. 2

Only supportive rehabilitation is the answer.

Being an intensivist, it is extremely important to educate staff and to protect patient from any physical or psychological harm (like procedure without adequate analgesia), with an upmost understanding that it is an "imprisoned mind buried alive in a dead body’’ (as said for character with paralysis like locked-in syndrome in Thérèse Raquin by Emile Zola - 1868).


References: Click to get articles/abstract

1. The patient's journey: Living with locked-in syndrome - BMJ 2005;331:94-97 (9 July)
2. Locked-in Syndrome - enotes.com
3. Plum F, Posner JB. The diagnosis of stupor and coma. Philadelphia: FA Davis, 1982; 377
4. Locked-in syndrome: a catastrophic complication after surgery - British Journal of Anaesthesia, 2004, Vol. 92, No. 2 286-288