Brains donated to the NSWBTRC come from two sources. The first is the New South Wales Department of Forensic Medicine (DOFM) (equivalent to the Medical Examiners office), that receives all sudden, unexpected, accidental, institutional, or violent deaths from the greater Sydney region (~5 million people). Approximately 60% of the next of kin contacted consent to brain donation (Glaw et al., 2009). This source provides the majority of alcoholic cases as well as controls.
