Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-28T08:01:19.339Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 3 - Ethical Considerations for Maternal-Fetal Surgery

from Section 1

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 November 2021

By
David Guye Mann
Edited by
Olutoyin A. Olutoye
Olutoyin A. Olutoye
Affiliation:
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Illinois
Get access

Summary

The founding physicians of fetal surgery recognized that experimental procedures involving a fetus were morally sensitive and would require a formal review to assess their ethical justification. A Fetal Therapy Board (FTB) is one of the groups assembled to provide such formal ethical reviews; and as such, this group would logically have members representing certain medical/surgical specialties beyond the fetal surgeon. A framework to be used by a FTB as applied to the fetal status, the components of an ethical justification, and the informed consent process for fetal interventions is presented. In addition, some hypothetical examples of a FTB review are provided to highlight specific ethical dilemmas.

Keywords

Fetal InterventionFetal SurgeryMaternal-Fetal SurgeryEthicsBioethics
Type
Chapter
Information
Anesthesia for Maternal-Fetal Surgery
Concepts and Clinical Practice
 , pp. 37 - 44
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Harrison, MR, Filly, RA, Golbus, MS, et al. Fetal treatment 1982. N Engl J Med. 1982;307(26): 1651–1652.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Post, LF. Bioethical consideration of maternal-fetal issues. Fordham Urban Law J. 1996;24(4):757–776.Google Scholar
Moaddab, A, Nassr, AA, Belfort, MA, Shamshirsaz, AA. Ethical issues in fetal therapy. Best Pract Res Clin Obstet Gynaecol. 2017;43:58–67.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
English, A, Bass, L, Boyle, AD, Eshrage, F. State Minor Consent Laws: A Summary. 3rd ed. Center for Adolescent Health & the Law;2010.Google Scholar
Chervenak, FA, McCullough, LB. Ethics of maternal-fetal surgery. Semin Fetal Neonatal Med. 2007;12(6):426–431.Google Scholar
Chervenak, FA, McCullough, LB. An ethically justified framework for clinical investigation to benefit pregnant and fetal patients. Am J Bioethics. 2011;11(5):39–49.Google Scholar
Chervenak, FA, McCullough, LB. Ethical issues in recommending and offering fetal therapy. Western J Med. 1993;159:396–399.Google ScholarPubMed
Lyerly, AD, Little, MO, Faden, RR. A critique of the “fetus as patient.” Am J Bioethics. 2008;8(7):42–44.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Antiel, RM. Ethical challenges in the new world of maternal-fetal surgery. Semin Perinatol. 2016;40:227–233.Google Scholar
Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, and Office for Human Research Protections. The Common Rule, Title 45 (Public Welfare), Code of Federal Regulations, Part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). [Online] 13 May 2018. Available: https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/regulations-and-policy/regulations/45-cfr-46/index.htmlGoogle Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×