Withdrawing life-prolonging medical treatment in 246 patients

Determinants of acceptance of end-of-life interventions: a comparison between withdrawing life-prolonging treatment and euthanasia in Austria

BACKGROUND End-of-life decisions remain a hotly debated issue in many European countries and the acceptance in the general population can act as an important anchor point in these discussions. Previous studies on determinants of the acceptance of end-of-life interventions in the general population have not systematically assessed whether determinants differ between withdrawal of life-prolonging...

The sequence of withdrawing life-sustaining treatment from patients.

PURPOSE To describe the observed sequence of withdrawal of eight different forms of life-sustaining treatment and to determine whether aspects of those treatments determine the order of withdrawal. SUBJECTS AND METHODS We observed 211 consecutive patients dying in four midwestern US hospitals from whom at least one of eight specific life-sustaining treatments was or could have been withdrawn....

Considerations regarding withholding/withdrawing life-sustaining treatment.

Withholding life prolonging treatment, and self deception.

OBJECTIVES To compare non-treatment decision making by general practitioners and geriatricians in response to vignettes. To see whether the doctors' decisions were informed by ethical or legal reasoning. DESIGN Qualitative study in which consultant geriatricians and general practitioners (GPs) randomly selected from a list of local practitioners were interviewed. The doctors were asked whethe...

A nationwide study of decisions to forego life-prolonging treatment in Dutch medical practice.

BACKGROUND Decisions to withhold or withdraw life-prolonging treatment in terminally ill patients are common in some areas of medical practice. Information about the frequency and background of these decisions is generally limited to specific clinical settings. This article describes the practice of withholding or withdrawing life-prolonging treatment in the Netherlands. METHODS Questionnaire...