Cosmetic surgery for a fatally ill infant.
The ethical and clinical dimensions of strabismus surgery in a case of an infant with mucolipidosis type II are discussed. Three sets of considerations are relevant to the decision of performing such surgery: professional obligations to protect patients from futile or contraindicated treatment; parental authority to assess the risks and benefits for elective pediatric care; and the role of the family as patient. We argue that, when weighed together in the context of this case, these considerations can support a decision to perform the surgery upon parental request, despite the patient's poor prognosis.
Frankel
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Department of Ophthalmology, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, Pa. 17033.
Juengst
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ET
D026686:Beneficence; D004948:Esotropia / Q000601:surgery*; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D028681:Moral Obligations; D016532:Mucopolysaccharidosis II; D009801:Oculomotor Muscles / Q000601:surgery*; D018579:Patient Selection; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011379:Prognosis; D018570:Risk Assessment; D028761:Withholding Treatment