Biomaterial Database

Treatment of seriously ill and handicapped newborns. 1986

N Fost

Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine, Madison.

Medical technology makes it increasingly possible to prolong life, sometimes indefinitely in the face of overwhelming disability or suffering; thus, choices must be made whether to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining treatment. Reasonable people disagree about who should make such decisions when the patient is an infant, and what principles or rules should guide them. The article briefly reviews the recent history of this controversy analyzes the major ethical substantive principles that have been proposed to guide conduct, and presents the arguments for a procedural approach that is now attracting interest.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007231	Infant, Newborn	An infant during the first 28 days after birth.	Neonate,Newborns,Infants, Newborn,Neonates,Newborn,Newborn Infant,Newborn Infants
D007232	Infant, Newborn, Diseases	Diseases of newborn infants present at birth (congenital) or developing within the first month of birth. It does not include hereditary diseases not manifesting at birth or within the first 30 days of life nor does it include inborn errors of metabolism. Both HEREDITARY DISEASES and METABOLISM, INBORN ERRORS are available as general concepts.	Neonatal Diseases,Disease, Neonatal,Diseases, Neonatal,Neonatal Disease
D008020	Life Support Care	Care provided patients requiring extraordinary therapeutic measures in order to sustain and prolong life.	Extraordinary Treatment,Prolongation of Life,Care, Life Support,Extraordinary Treatments,Life Prolongation,Treatment, Extraordinary,Treatments, Extraordinary
D011367	Professional Staff Committees	Committees of professional personnel who have responsibility for determining policies, procedures, and controls related to professional matters in health facilities.	Committee, Professional Staff,Committees, Professional Staff,Professional Staff Committee,Staff Committee, Professional,Staff Committees, Professional
D002651	Child Advocacy	Promotion and protection of the rights of children; frequently through a legal process.	Advocacies, Child,Advocacy, Child,Child Advocacies
D003422	Critical Care	Health care provided to a critically ill patient during a medical emergency or crisis.	Intensive Care,Intensive Care, Surgical,Surgical Intensive Care,Care, Critical,Care, Intensive,Care, Surgical Intensive
D004991	Ethics, Institutional	The moral and ethical obligations or responsibilities of institutions.	Ethics, Health Facility,Ethics, Hospital,Ethics, Organizational,Organizational Ethics,Health Facility Ethics,Hospital Ethics,Institutional Ethics,Institutional Obligations,Ethic, Health Facility,Ethic, Hospital,Ethic, Institutional,Ethic, Organizational,Facility Ethic, Health,Facility Ethics, Health,Health Facility Ethic,Hospital Ethic,Institutional Ethic,Institutional Obligation,Obligation, Institutional,Obligations, Institutional,Organizational Ethic
D004992	Ethics, Medical	The principles of professional conduct concerning the rights and duties of the physician, relations with patients and fellow practitioners, as well as actions of the physician in patient care and interpersonal relations with patient families.	Medical Ethics
D006233	Disabled Persons	Persons with physical or mental disabilities that affect or limit their activities of daily living and that may require special accommodations.	Handicapped,People with Disabilities,Persons with Disabilities,Physically Challenged,Physically Handicapped,Physically Disabled,Disabilities, People with,Disabilities, Persons with,Disability, Persons with,Disabled Person,Disabled, Physically,Handicapped, Physically,People with Disability,Person, Disabled,Persons with Disability,Persons, Disabled
D006295	Health Resources	Available manpower, facilities, revenue, equipment, and supplies to produce requisite health care and services.	Resources,Health Resource,Resource,Resource, Health,Resources, Health