Comment on "Detecting awareness in the vegetative state".
Nachev P., Husain M.
In a report of a single patient in a persistent vegetative state, Owen et al. (Brevia, 8 September 2006, p. 1402) claimed that the presence of task-specific brain activation in response to verbal command implies both covert conscious awareness and a capacity for intention. We argue that neither can be securely inferred from the evidence presented.