Pearls and pitfalls of ethical issues in neurology.
The growth of bioethics as a practical, meaningful player in the arena of health care has paralleled that of clinical neurology not only in time but also in interaction between the two disciplines. Almost every advance in neurology has spawned an ethical dilemma, the unraveling of which has brought new insights to both fields of endeavor. The myriad ways in which this parallel growth has touched one clinical neurologist, the persons with whom he has been privileged to work, and those for whom they have cared is offered in reflection on the meaning of ethics, the essence of concepts such as "brain death," the pain of truth telling, the complexity of informed consent, the societal dimension of the "vegetative state," and finally, even the business of medicine. Should readers not find any pearls of wisdom in this offering, the author can at least hope it will prevent them from falling into the same pits.
McQuillen
M P
MP
Department of Neurology, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, New York 14618, USA.
D000739:Anecdotes as Topic; D001926:Brain Death; D026690:Ethics, Clinical; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D015276:Health Care Rationing; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D009462:Neurology / Q000592:standards*; D018458:Persistent Vegetative State; D014481:United States