Withholding and withdrawing life-sustaining treatment (including artificial nutrition and hydration)

Abstract

Life-sustaining treatment is any treatment that serves to prolong life without reversing the underlying medical condition. It includes cardiopulmonary resuscitation, mechanical ventilation, haemodialysis, left ventricular assist devices, antibiotics, and artificial nutrition and hydration. The appropriate use of life-sustaining treatment in seriously ill patients is a controversial topic that continues to generate intense debate among the public, as well as healthcare professionals, bioethicists, lawyers, governments, and religious institutions. This chapter offers a practical guide and sets out important questions clinicians ought to consider before making the decision to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining treatment.