Cardiologist Dr Pim Van Lommel, who has published numerous papers on the topic, explores the phenomenology of Near Death Experience, including common features.

In a study of a cardiac unit, almost 20% of patients with cardiac arrest reported NDE, and of these, the majority spoke of a lasting impact on their lives. Typically it led to an increased value for life and how it should be lived, greater spirituality and intuition and an insight into something beyond life. Science is, however, resistant to the concept as it implies life beyond the brain.