Early pregnancy wastage: Ethical considerations

Reproductive BioMedicine Online

Volumn 22, Issue 7, 2011, Pages 692-700

  Benagiano, Giuseppe ^a   Mori, Maurizio ^b   Ford, Norman ^c   Grudzinskas, Gedis ^d  

^a POLICLINICO UMBERTO I   (Italy)

^b UNIVERSITY OF TURIN   (Italy)

^c Catholic Theological College   (Australia)

^d NONE   (United Kingdom)

Author keywords

embryonic loss; individuality; personhood; sentience

Indexed keywords

ABORTION; ARTICLE; CONCEPTION; EMBRYO DEATH; FIRST TRIMESTER PREGNANCY; HUMAN; HUMAN EMBRYO; LIFE; MEDICAL ETHICS; MORALITY; PREGNANCY; RELIGION; SECULARISM; THEISM;

BEGINNING OF HUMAN LIFE; BIOETHICAL ISSUES; EMBRYO LOSS; FEMALE; HUMANS; PREGNANCY; RELIGION AND SCIENCE;

EID: 79958076659     PISSN: 14726483     EISSN: 14726491     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2011.03.008     Document Type: Article

References (43)

1. Aristotle, Metaphysics, See Ross, W.D.; 1966. The Works of Aristotle Translated into English. vol. VIII, second ed. Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1958, pp. 1049a (reprinted 1966).
2. Aristotle, Generation of Animals, 778b, See Ross, W.D.; 1965. The works of Aristotle translated into English. vol. V, translated by Arthur Platt, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1912 (reprinted).
3. Australian Senate Select Committee on the Human Embryo Experimentation, 1986. Human Embryo Experimentation in Australia: Bill 1985, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, 1986.
4. F.J. Beckwith Of souls, selves and cerebrums: a reply to Himma Int. J. Med. Ethics 31 2005 56 60 (Pubitemid 40214696)
5. Benagiano, G.; Mori, M. 2006. The evolution of thinking of the Catholic Church on the beginning of human life. Reprod. BioMed. Online 14 (Suppl. 1), 162-168.
6. G. Benagiano, M. Farris, and S. Grudzinskas The fate of fertilized human oocytes Reprod. BioMed. Online 21 2010 732 741
7. Bortolotti, L.; Harris, J. 2005. Stem cell research, personhood and sentience. Reprod. BioMed. Online 10 (Suppl.1), 68-75. (Pubitemid 40378470)
8. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 1974. Declaration on Procured Abortion, Available from: < http://www.vatican.va/roman-curia/congregations/ cfaith/documents/rc-con-cfaith-doc-19741118-declaration-abortion-en.html > (accessed on 10 September 2010).
9. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 1987. Instruction on respect for human life in its origin and on the dignity of procreation - replies to certain questions of the day. Vatican City: Tipografia Poliglotta Vaticana.
10. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 1988. Donum Vitae, Acta Apostolica Sedis.
11. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2008. Instruction Dignitas Personae on Certain Bioethical Questions. Acta Apostolicae Sedis, 90/12, 862.
12. Department of Health and Social Security (United Kingdom), 1984. Report of the Committee of Inquiry into Human Fertilization and Embryology, Chairman, Dame Mary Warnock. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
13. J.T. Eberl The beginning of personhood: a Thomistic biological analysis Bioethics 14 2000 134 157 (Pubitemid 30205102)
14. A. Einstein Out of My Later years 1950 Philosophical Library New York
15. N. Ford When does human life begin? science, Government, Church Pacifica 1 1988 315 316
16. Ford, N. 2002. The prenatal person. In: Ethics from Conception to Birth. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford.
17. N. Ford Respect due to human embryos, research and legislation Int. Med. J. 35 2005 258 260 (Pubitemid 40529592)
18. N. Ford Moral respect due to the human embryo, ethics education J. Appl. Philos. Ethics Christian Tradition 13 2007 13 20
19. Ford, N. 2008. A Catholic ethical approach to human reproductive technology. Ethics, Bioscience and Life, RBM Online, 17 (Suppl. 3), 39-48.
20. G.B. Gertler Brain birth: a proposal for defining when a foetus is entitled to human life status South Calif. Law Rev. 59 1986 1061 1978
21. R.M. Green Embryo as epiphenomenon: some cultural, social and economic forces driving the stem cell debate J. Med. Ethics 34 2008 840 844
22. J. Harris The concept of the person and the value of life Kennedy Inst. Ethics J. 9 1999 293 308
23. J. Harris Sexual reproduction is a survival lottery Camb. Q Healthc. Ethics 13 2004 75 90
24. C. Hartshorne Scientific and religious aspects of bioethics E.E. Shelp, Theology and Bioethics: Exploring the Foundations and Frontiers 1985 D. Reidel Publishing Co. Dordrecht, Holland 985
25. John Paul II, 1995. Encyclical letter Evangelium Vitae (the gospel of life). Issued on 3 march, 1995. Available from: (accessed on 10 September 2010).
26. L. Kass Toward a More Natural Science. Biology and Human Affaire 1985 Simon and Schuster, the Free Press New York
27. P. Lee The pro-life argument from substantial identity: a defence Bioethics 18 2004 261
28. M. Lockwood When does a life Begin? M. Lockwood, Moral Dilemmas in Modern Medicine 1985 Oxford Oxford University Press
29. M. Mori Is the human embryo a person? No D. Evans, Conceiving the Embryo Ethics, Law, Practice in Human Embryology 1996 Evans Ed. Martinus Nijhoff Hague
30. M. Mori Is 'hands off' policy to reproduction preferable to artificial intervention? D. Evans, Creating the Child. The Ethics, Law and Practice of Assisted Procreation 1996 Martinus Nijhoff Hague
31. M. Mori On Pre-embryo: The Ground of a New 'Copernican Revolution' on the Current View about Human Reproduction J. Harris, S. Holm, The Future of Human Reproduction 1998 Oxford University Press Oxford
32. Mori, M. 1998b. Life, concept of, entry. In: Chadwick, R. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics, vol. 3, Academic Press, San Diego (CA).
33. M. Mori Aborto e morale. Per capire un nuovo diritto [Abortion and Ethics: to understand a new right] 2008 Einaudi Torino
34. Mori, M. 2011. In: Chqadwick, R. (Ed.), Life, Concept of, entRy in Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics (new edition). Academic Press, San Diego (in press).
35. T.F. Murphy The ethics of spontaneous abortion J. Med. Ethics 11 1985 79 83
36. J. Pfeffer-Merryl Embryos in limbo New Atlantis 24 2009 18 28
37. J.M. Rist The Mind of Aristotle: A Study in Philosophical Growth 1989 University Press Toronto
38. Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, 2010. Foetal Awareness. Review of Research and Recommendations for Practice. Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists: London.
39. Savulescu, J.; Harris, J. 2004. The creation lottery: final lessons from natural reproduction: why those who accept natural reproduction should accept cloning and other Frankenstein reproductive technologies. Camb. Q Healthc. Ethics 13, 90-95. (Pubitemid 38270994)
40. P. Singer Practical Ethics second ed. 1993 Cambridge University Press Cambridge
41. Singer, P. 2002. In: Kuhse, H. (Ed.), Unsanctifying Human Life, Blackwell, Oxford.
42. Vecchi, L.; Leone M. Dibattito, 1976. Quando comincia la vita? [Debate: when does life begin?] Panorama (Milan), 7 December 1976.
43. D. Wendler Understanding the 'conservative' view on abortion Bioethics 13 1999 32 55