The Problem of Fetal Pain and Abortion: Toward an Ethical Consensus for Appropriate Behavior

Brugger, E. Christian

doi:10.1353/ken.2012.0014

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…Some estimates place the onset of consciousness at around 25 weeks' gestational age, 15 and the beginning of pain perception at around 30 weeks, 16 but there is arguably sufficient uncertainty about the exact threshold that we cannot rule out the possibility that sentience begins as early as 20 weeks' gestational age. 17 Assuming this is correct, we can be reasonably confident that a brain organoid lacks even a rudimentary form of consciousness until it resembles the brain of a fetus at 20 weeks' development. Beyond this point, we should treat brain organoids as if they could plausibly possess some degree of consciousness.…”

Section: Consciousness In Brain Organoidsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moral Limits of Brain Organoid Research

Koplin¹,

Savulescu²

2019

J. Law. Med. Ethics

105

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Brain organoid research raises ethical challenges not seen in other forms of stem cell research. Given that brain organoids partially recapitulate the development of the human brain, it is plausible that brain organoids could one day attain consciousness and perhaps even higher cognitive abilities. Brain organoid research therefore raises difficult questions about these organoids' moral status – questions that currently fall outside the scope of existing regulations and guidelines. This paper shows how these gaps can be addressed. We outline a moral framework for brain organoid research that can address the relevant ethical concerns without unduly impeding this important area of research.

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Section: Consciousness In Brain Organoidsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moral Limits of Brain Organoid Research

Koplin¹,

Savulescu²

2019

J. Law. Med. Ethics

105

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“…The question of conscious pain perception in the early preterm newborn (or foetus) has been hotly debated , mainly because of its social, ethical and legal implications . Consciousness was widely believed to reside in the cerebral cortex, thus putatively being absent or rudimentary in those without functional thalamocortical connections , although mechanisms underlying the subcortical control of consciousness and functionality of the subplate zone appear to challenge that default.…”

Section: Previous Studies On Persistent or Chronic Pain In Newbornsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Defining pain in newborns: need for a uniform taxonomy?

Anand

2017

Acta Paediatr

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A framework for defining pain terms such as acute, persistent, prolonged or chronic pain to newborns was derived from the scientific literature on neonatal pain assessments, previous attempts to define chronic pain and the clinical and neurophysiological features of neonatal pain. This novel framework incorporates the temporal features, localising characteristics, and secondary effects of the pain experienced, as well as the behavioural and physiological response patterns of newborns.ConclusionAlthough not evidence‐based, this framework provides an initial starting point for defining commonly used neonatal pain terms. It will require future revision/refinement based on the accumulating evidence for non‐acute pain.

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“…Current research suggests that capacities often taken to be relevant to moral consideration consistently develop before or after birth rather than concurrently. For instance, the data suggest that sentience begins sometime between 20 and 30 weeks of gestational age, 30 while even the most primitive self-awareness generally does not appear until at least two months after birth. 31 …”

Section: Arguments For Excluding Stillbirths From Measures Of Disementioning

confidence: 99%

Valuing Stillbirths

Phillips¹,

Millum²

2014

Bioethics

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Estimates of the burden of disease assess the mortality and morbidity that affect a population by producing summary measures of health such as quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). These measures typically do not include stillbirths (fetal deaths occurring during the later stages of pregnancy or during labor) among the negative health outcomes they count. Priority setting decisions that rely on these measures are therefore likely to place little value on preventing the more than three million stillbirths that occur annually worldwide. In contrast, neonatal deaths, which occur in comparable numbers, have a substantial impact on burden of disease estimates and are commonly seen as a pressing health concern. In this paper we argue in favor of incorporating unintended fetal deaths that occur late in pregnancy into estimates of the burden of disease. Our argument is based on the similarity between late-term fetuses and newborn infants and the assumption that protecting newborns is important. We respond to four objections to counting stillbirths: (1) that fetuses are not yet part of the population and so their deaths should not be included in measures of population health; (2) that valuing the prevention of stillbirths will undermine women’s reproductive rights; (3) that including stillbirths implies that miscarriages (fetal deaths early in pregnancy) should also be included; and (4) that birth itself is in fact ethically significant. We conclude that our proposal is ethically preferable to current practice and, if adopted, is likely to lead to improved decisions about health spending.

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The Problem of Fetal Pain and Abortion: Toward an Ethical Consensus for Appropriate Behavior

Cited by 8 publications

References 52 publications

Moral Limits of Brain Organoid Research

Moral Limits of Brain Organoid Research

Defining pain in newborns: need for a uniform taxonomy?

Valuing Stillbirths

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