An anti-vaccine movement that has been amplified by the Internet and endorsed by vocal celebrities has created a persistent public fear that the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine causes autism in children.
Once virtually eradicated through routine immunization, measles and mumps are making a striking comeback in the U.S. in 2014 with a record number of post-vaccination era measles cases and several large mumps outbreaks on college campuses.
Advance directives enabling people with advanced dementia to refuse food and water as a way of hastening death are controversial.
The Food and Drug Administration recently held hearings on mitochondrial manipulation to determine whether additional research is needed before proceeding to clinical trials. Ethical concerns include:
Bioethicists can advocate for improved communication with family caregivers when a patient is going to be discharged from the hospital.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) recommended in 2013 that predictive genetic testing for adult-onset disorders should not be done in children.
Older individuals who have experience with end-of-life care of others demonstrate greater readiness to participate in advance care planning, according to a recent study.
Patients get the specific care they want at the end of life when they document their wishes using a physician orders for life-sustaining treatment (POLST) form, according to a recent study.
Organ donation consent rates are significantly lower among Hispanics, blacks, and Asians compared to whites, according to recent studies.
