If someone is brain dead and on a ventilator how can their heart continue to beat?

this person had no brain activity... no blood flow to her brain....she had 5 operations in 24 hours on her brain for anurysums....shw was 45 and never sick a day in her life....also how could her organs be any good for donations since they had all shut down....i just dont understand.....god i miss my cousion who died on Dec 22,2006 and buried the 27th

I'm sorry about your loss. The cerebral cortex which is the bigger part of thier brain was not functioning. Meaning, there wasn't any thought process or the ability to move. Both the respiratory and cardiac functions occur in the Pons and Medulla which are part of her brain stem. She was kept on a respiratory ventilator, and that part of her brain was not affected by the stroke still received oxygen it allowed her heart to continue to beat.

I'm so sorry for your loss. I'm not an expert, but I think the ventilator breathes for the patient and therefore keeps the heartbeating and the organs in good condition.

the organs hav blood supply.
thus they dont become damaged.
ie y they r used for transplants

My husband suffered a stroke which affected the brain stem. He was put on a ventilator to keep his heart pumping and his organs viable. The ventilator keeps the blood pumping although the person is virtually dead. His organs were harvested and his heart was kept beating until it was put in the recipiant. It started beating on it's own without being shocked to start it. Amazing! My husband has continued to live on in the people that he helped and I know them and they are all precious people to me.