PMID: 16523802Mar 10, 2006Paper

Medical end-of-life decisions in neonates and infants in Flanders, Belgium; 1999/2000

Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde
V ProvoostL Deliens

Abstract

To determine the number of medical end-of-life decisions in critically ill neonates and infants in Flanders, Belgium. Retrospective. A death certificate study on all deaths of neonates and infants in the whole of Flanders was carried out over a i2-month period (August 1999-July 2000). An anonymous questionnaire was sent by mail to the attending physician of each of the 292 children who died under the age of 1 year. All physicians who had attended at least one death during the study period were included in an attitude study. A total of 253 (87%) of the 292 questionnaires were returned and 121 (69%) of the 175 physicians involved completed the questions on attitude. An end-of-life decision had been possible in 194 (77%; 95% CI: 70.4-82.4) of the 253 deaths for which questionnaires were returned, and such a decision was actually made in 143 cases (57%; 95% CI: 48.9-64.0). Lethal drugs were administered in 15 of 117 early neonatal deaths and in 2 of 77 later deaths (13% versus 3%; p = 0.018). The attitude study showed that 69 (58%; 95% CI: 48.1-66.5) of the 120 physicians supported a change in the law making life-termination possible in some well-defined cases. The death of neonates and infants was commonly preceded by an end-of-li...Continue Reading

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