ETHICAL ISSUES IN SEVERE PERINATAL ASPHYXIA

Severe perinatal asphyxia represents a major source of neonatal mortality and further neurologic sequelae in survivors. The purpose of this article is to present and discuss some of the ethical issues regarding immediate treatment and long-term care of the children affected by this disease. These issues arose from a small study conducted in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Cuza-Voda Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, in Iasi The intensive care of the newborns with severe perinatal asphyxia should not take into account the severity of the condition or hospitalization costs, due to the high regenerative capabilities and resistance to hypoxia of the neonatal central nervous system.