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Parental duties and untreatable genetic conditions

H Clarkeburn1

  • 1Institute of Biomedical and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow.

Journal of Medical Ethics
|October 31, 2000
PubMed

Insights

Parents may have a duty to use prenatal genetic testing for non-treatable conditions. This duty applies only if the child faces a life worse than non-existence, potentially requiring pregnancy termination.

Area of Science:

  • Bioethics
  • Medical Ethics
  • Reproductive Ethics

Background:

  • Parental duties of beneficence and non-maleficence are central to reproductive decision-making.
  • Prenatal genetic testing offers insights into potential non-treatable conditions.
  • Ethical considerations arise regarding the use of such testing for conditions with severe implications.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine parental duties concerning prenatal genetic testing for non-treatable conditions.
  • To establish criteria for when prenatal testing becomes an ethical imperative.
  • To explore the moral permissibility of terminating a pregnancy based on testing results.

Main Methods:

  • Philosophical analysis of beneficence and non-maleficence principles.
  • Ethical argumentation regarding the value of life and non-existence.
  • Case-based reasoning applied to hypothetical scenarios of severe impairment.

Main Results:

  • Parental duty to test exists only if the child's life risks being worse than non-existence.
  • Non-existence can be rationally preferred over a life with uncontrollable pain and lack of self-development.
  • Duty to terminate an affected pregnancy is proposed when a life worse than non-existence is indicated.

Conclusions:

  • Parental duties in prenatal genetic testing are conditional on potential child welfare.
  • The ethical framework supports testing and potential termination to prevent a life deemed worse than non-existence.
  • This duty does not extend to conditions where the resulting life is considered preferable to non-existence.

Keywords:
Analytical ApproachGenetics and Reproduction

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