Nesseler N, et al. - Researchers used a nationwide cohort of brain-injured adult patients, to determine the factors related to the decision to withdraw or withhold life support (WWLS) in brain-injured patients requiring mechanical ventilation who survive the first 24 h in the ICU. In these subjects, the outcomes and time to death were also analyzed. In this study conducted at 20 French ICUs in 18 university hospitals, a high proportion of deaths related to an end-of-life decision was reported. The factors that were found to be related to the decision to WWLS included older age and several disease severity factors (presence of one nonreactive and dilated pupil, Glasgow Coma Scale less than 7, barbiturate use, acute respiratory distress syndrome and worsening lesions on computed tomography scans).