Scientists have condemned the decision of a court to grant permission for a teenage girl to freeze her body after death, claiming the chances of her being revived are "infinitesimal".

Experts said cryogenic companies were irresponsible for implying there is a realistic hope that a dead human could be unfrozen, brought back to life and cured of a fatal disease in the future.

They said the High Court had made "no assessment of the plausibility of the science" and warned the ruling could encourage vulnerable people to pursue unrealistic hopes.

Clive Coen, Professor of Neuroscience at King’s College London, said: “The advocates of cryogenics are unable to cite any study in which a whole mammalian brain, let alone a whole mammalian body, has been resuscitated after storage in liquid nitrogen.

“Even if reviving that body were possible - it isn't - all the complicated organs would have been wrecked from the start, and warming them up again would wreck them further.

“Irreversible damage is caused during the process of taking the mammalian brain into sub-zero temperatures. The wishful thinking engendered by cryogenics companies is irresponsible.

“As I understand the judgment, no assessment of the plausibility of the science was considered. The matter was judged in terms of personal freedom. It's sad to think that vulnerable people may miss this crucial point and pursue unrealistic hopes."