Parents split over letting son die

Parents split over letting son die


LONDON, Nov. 1 (UPI) -- British parents disagree whether their severely disabled 1-year-old son should be allowed to live or die, court officials said.

The baby, known publicly only as Baby RB, suffers from congenital myasthenic syndrome, an incurable muscle condition that leaves him unable to move his limbs effectively or breathe without artificial support, The Sunday Times of London reported.

The condition has not affected his brain and he can see and hear.

Britain's High Court Monday will consider a request from a hospital and the boy's mother to remove him from a ventilator and let him die because his quality of life allegedly is too low, court records say.

The boy's father opposes the move and wants doctors to perform a tracheotomy, cutting a hole in the boy's neck to deliver more air to his lungs, The Times reported.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/International/2009/11/01/Parents-split-over-letting-son-die/UPI-95061257080240/

go you and i. i can't judge either parent and have no way of knowing where i would stand on the issue, were it my child. tragic all the way around.

but I wouldn't want to have to make the decision. They have to handle it the best they can so they can live with themselves. Each person reaches a conclusion in their own way.

grapple with these decisions all the time. Some families go for the trach and vent, others don't. It can get very messy when parents don't agree. Even without the trach and vent there are new machines that can prolong the lives of these children. The cough assist is a new machine that helps very weak children move phlegm more easily so their secretions can be suctioned. More kids are using therapy vests that vibrate the chest so the phlegm can move better, also.

But for a while longer at least 'I think' I might err on the side of life at this point. I really don't know. Now that is parental Hell. Very, very sad for them.

a third option - why not try the trach and if it does not work then disconnect?

my best to keep him happy and comfortable. His life will not be long, regardless, but if he can be kept from suffering unbearably, and can experience life to some degree (because he does have senses and normal brain function), that's better than no life at all, IMO. But I can understand it if the parents feel that they can't put him through misery. Awful decision to have to make.

Most people would choose life. Even a severely limited life.