Artificial wombs: medical miracle, legal nightmare.
The fact that the development of the artificial uterus is nearing completion is a mixed blessing. It will provide numerous benefits within the field of pediatric medicine, such as ensuring normal development to term of extremely premature foetuses, but it will pose numerous problems which the law is ill-equipped to handle. The legislature will have to examine the current definition of 'parent' which is based on normal conception practices. It will also have to determine whether only married couples should have access to this technology and under which conditions.
Lupton
M L
ML
School of Law, University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.
D000818:Animals; D001187:Artificial Organs; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development / Q000502:physiology; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D005260:Female; D005328:Fetal Viability / Q000502:physiology; D006041:Goats; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007235:Infant, Premature, Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D008297:Male; D010920:Placenta; D011247:Pregnancy; D012099:Reproductive Techniques / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D014599:Uterus