Karen Ann Quinlan Biography
Medical Patient
Karen Ann Quinlan was the first modern icon of the right-to-die debate. The 21-year-old Quinlan collapsed at a party after swallowing alcohol and the tranquilizer Valium on 14 April 1975. Doctors saved her life, but she suffered brain damage and lapsed into a "persistent vegetative state." Her family waged a much-publicized legal battle for the right to remove her life support machinery. They succeeded, but in a final twist, Quinlan kept breathing after the respirator was unplugged. She remained in a coma for almost 10 years in a New Jersey nursing home until her 1985 death.Extra credit: Quinlan's case is often compared to that of accident victim Nancy Cruzan and "Terri's Law" subject Terri Schiavo.
Ms. Quinlan appears in our loop on rumors, I'm Not Dead Yet!
Four Good Links
The Matter of Quinlan
Excerpts from the state Supreme Court's decision, including the basic case history
Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice
Run by her family; see the "history" section for the family's take on her case
The Brain of Karen Ann Quinlan
Serious students can subscribe and read this medical article
Brain Death Resources
List of links to medical and ethical issues of severe brain injury
Vital Stats
Birth
Birthplace
Death
11 June 1985
(pneumonia, age 31)
Best Known As
Controversial coma patient of the 1970s
