The vegetative and minimally conscious states: ethical implications.
Modern medical technology has created new syndromes of severe and permanent brain damage. In the first 25 years of the right-to-die debate, the permanent vegetative state has been the paradigmatic neurologic syndrome for decisions to discontinue treatment. In the near future, however, a far more problematic syndrome may be even more important in the right-to-die debate, the minimally conscious state. This paper presents a few of the medical and ethical similarities and differences between the permanent vegetative and minimally conscious states and discusses how value-laden these decisions may become in the future.
Cranford
R E
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Department of Neurology, Hennepin County Medical Center, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
D001927:Brain Diseases; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D006801:Humans; D018458:Persistent Vegetative State / Q000175:diagnosis*; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D014481:United States; D026712:Value of Life; D028761:Withholding Treatment