In this article we explore decision-making about treatment when a child faces a life-threatening illness but conventional treatment presents substantial risk and uncertain benefit. When is it acceptable for parents to decide to use complementary and alternative medicine as an alternative, rather than a complement, to conventional care? We use the example of a young child suffering from progressive glycogen storage disease, for whom liver transplant offers the only prospect of a cure. Without a liver transplant, the disease usually results in death within a few years. However, experience using transplant to treat this illness has been limited, success is far from ensured, and the risks (including death and continued progression of the disease) are substantial. The child's parents, who are first-generation immigrants, consider the risks of the transplant unjustified because it still does not offer good prospects for a healthy future. They believe that traditional Chinese medicine could help remediate their daughter's disease. In the article we (1) review parents' obligation to make treatment decisions in the best interests of their child, (2) explain limits on parents' decision-making authority, (3) explore how "best interests" are determined, focusing on cases of serious illness for which conventional treatment is risky and benefit is possible but uncertain, (4) explain the standard of care that physicians must meet in advising about treatment, and (5) outline factors that clinicians and parents should take into account when making decisions.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1542/peds.2010-2720F | DOI Listing |
J Chem Theory Comput
January 2025
Laboratory of Medicinal Chemistry, Rega Institute for Medicinal Research, Herestraat 49, Box 1030, Leuven B-3000, Belgium.
Synthetic nucleic acids, also defined as xenobiotic nucleic acids (XNAs), opened an avenue to address the limitations of nucleic acid therapeutics and the development of alternative carriers for genetic information in biotechnological applications. Two related XNA systems of high interest are the α-l-threose nucleic acid (TNA) and (3'-2') phosphonomethyl threosyl nucleic acid (tPhoNA), where TNAs show potential in antisense applications, whereas tPhoNAs are investigated for their predisposition toward orthogonal genetic systems. We present predictions on helical models of TNA and tPhoNA chemistry in homoduplexes and in complex with native ribose chemistries.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVet Dermatol
January 2025
Department of Veterinary Clinic, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Brazil.
Background: Antimicrobial resistance is increasing each year. For example, in 2019 it was directly responsible for an estimated >1 million deaths. Additionally, the development of new drugs is much slower, generating enormous concerns about responses to infection in the future health scenario.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFClin Case Rep
February 2025
Personalized Precision Health Systems Foundation Bengaluru Karnataka India.
A 42-year-old female with left nasal blockage, facial numbness, upper palate pain, and headache was diagnosed with fungal ball sinusitis via CT scan. Refusing surgery, she opted for Ayurveda. Comprehensive treatment led to complete symptom resolution and a clear CT scan at 3 months.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFiScience
January 2025
Department of Electrical and Computering Engineering, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY 13902, USA.
Our recent research on type-I quadrature parity-time (PT) symmetry, utilizing an open twin-beam system, not only enables observing genuine quantum photonic PT symmetry amid phase-sensitive amplification (PSA) and loss in the presence of Langevin noise but also reveals an additional classical-to-quantum (C2Q) transition in noise fluctuations. In contrast to the previous setup, our exploration of an alternative system assuming no loss involves a type-II PSA-only scheme. This scheme facilitates dual opposing quadrature-PT symmetry, offering a comprehensive and complementary comprehension of C2Q transitions and PT-enhanced quantum sensing with optimal performance in the symmetry unbroken region.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRev Cardiovasc Med
January 2025
Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, 637000 Nanchong, Sichuan, China.
Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is the ultimate manifestation of the myocardial response to various genetic and environmental changes and is characterized mainly by impaired left ventricular systolic and diastolic function. DCM can ultimately lead to heart failure, ventricular arrhythmia (VA), and sudden cardiac death (SCD), making it a primary indication for heart transplantation. With advancements in modern medicine, several novel techniques for evaluating myocardial involvement and disease severity from diverse perspectives have been developed.
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