Review of palliative sedation and its distinction from euthanasia and lethal injection

Journal of Pain and Palliative Care Pharmacotherapy

Volumn 26, Issue 1, 2012, Pages 30-39

  Hahn, Michael P ^a  

^a LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

dying; euthanasia; existential; pain; palliative; sedation; terminal

Indexed keywords

ANESTHETIC AGENT; BARBITURIC ACID DERIVATIVE; BENZODIAZEPINE; BENZODIAZEPINE DERIVATIVE; CHLORPROMAZINE; FLUNITRAZEPAM; HALOPERIDOL; KETAMINE; LEVOMEPROMAZINE; LORAZEPAM; MIDAZOLAM; NEUROLEPTIC AGENT; OPIATE; PENTOBARBITAL; PHENOBARBITAL; PROPOFOL; SEDATIVE AGENT; THIOPENTAL;

AGITATION; AMNESIA; ANALGESIA; ANOREXIA; ANXIETY; ASSISTED SUICIDE; BIOETHICS; CARDIOTOXICITY; CLINICAL PRACTICE; CONFUSION; CONTINUOUS INFUSION; DEHYDRATION; DELIRIUM; DRUG HALF LIFE; DRUG SAFETY; DYING; DYSPNEA; EMOTIONAL STRESS; EUTHANASIA; EXTRAPYRAMIDAL SYMPTOM; FATIGUE; FECES IMPACTION; HALLUCINATION; HEALTH CARE QUALITY; HUMAN; HUMAN DIGNITY; HYDRATION; HYPOTENSION; INJECTION SITE PAIN; INSOMNIA; INTENSIVE CARE; LETHAL INJECTION; LONG TERM CARE; MALAISE; MYOCLONUS; NAUSEA AND VOMITING; NONHUMAN; NUTRITIONAL SUPPORT; ORTHOSTATIC HYPOTENSION; PAIN; PALLIATIVE SEDATION; PALLIATIVE THERAPY; PATERNALISM; PATIENT CARE PLANNING; PRACTICE GUIDELINE; REHYDRATION; RESPIRATION DEPRESSION; RETICULAR FORMATION; REVIEW; SEDATION; SEIZURE; SIDE EFFECT; SLEEP; TERMINAL CARE; TREATMENT INDICATION; TREATMENT WITHDRAWAL; UNCONSCIOUSNESS; WITHDRAWAL SYNDROME;

ANIMALS; CAPITAL PUNISHMENT; ETHICS, MEDICAL; EUTHANASIA; EUTHANASIA, ANIMAL; HUMANS; HYPNOTICS AND SEDATIVES; PALLIATIVE CARE; SUICIDE, ASSISTED;

EID: 84859081931     PISSN: 15360288     EISSN: 15360539     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.3109/15360288.2011.650353     Document Type: Review

References (38)

1. Higgins PC, Altilio T. Palliative sedation: an essential place for clinical excellence. J Soc Work End Life Palliat Care. 2007;3:3-30.
2. Engstrom J, Brunoa E,Holmb B, HellzenbO. Palliative sedation at end of life - a systematic literature review. Eur J Oncol Nurs. 2007;11:26-35.
3. Morita T, Bito S, Kurihara Y, Uchitomi Y. Development of a clinical guideline for palliative sedation therapy using the Delphi method. J Palliat Med. 2005;8:716-729.
4. Rousseau P. Palliative sedation in the control of refractory symptoms. J Palliat Med. 2005;8:10-12.
5. DeGraeff A, Dean M. Palliative sedation therapy in the last weeks of life: a literature review and recommendations for standards. J Palliat Med. 2007;10:67-85.
6. Kettler D, Nauck F. Palliative care and involvement of anesthesiology: current discussions. Cur Opin Anaesthesiol. 2010;23:173-176.
7. Lynch M. Palliative sedation. Clin J Oncol Nurs. 2003;7:653-657.
8. National Ethics Committee, Veterans Health Administration. The ethics of palliative sedation as a therapy of last resort. Am J Hosp Palliat Care. 2006;23:483-491.
9. Rady MY, Verheijde JL. Continuous deep sedation until death: palliation or physician-assisted death? Am J Hosp Palliat Care. 2010;27:205-214.
10. Cherny NI, Radbruch L; Board of the European Association for Palliative Care. European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) recommended framework for the use of sedation in palliative care. Palliat Med. 2009;23:581-593.
11. Kirk TW, Mahon MM; Palliative Sedation Task Force of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization Ethics Committee. National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) position statement and commentary on the use of palliative sedation in imminently dying terminally ill patients. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2010;39:914-923.
12. Rietjens JA, van Delden JM, van der Heide A, Vrakking AM, Onwuteaka-Philipsen BD, van der Maas PJ, van der Wal G. Terminal sedation and euthanasia: a comparison of clinical practices. Arch Intern Med. 2006;166:749-753.
13. Woods S. Is terminal sedation compatible with good nursing care at the end of life? Int J Palliat Nurs. 2004;10:244-247.
14. Battin MP. Terminal sedation: pulling the sheet over our eyes. Hastings Cent Rep. 2008;38:27-30.
15. Kaldjian LC, Jekel JF, Bernene JL, Rosenthal GE, Vaughan- Sarrazin M, Duffy TP. Internists' attitudes towards terminal sedation in end of life care. J Med Ethics. 2004;30:499-503.
16. Lo B, Rubenfeld G. Palliative sedation in dying patients: "we turn to it when everything else hasn't worked." JAMA. 2005;294:1810-1816.
17. Quill TE, Lo B, Brock DW, Meisel A. Last-resort options for palliative sedation. Ann Intern Med. 2009;151:421-424.
18. Maltoni M, Pittureri C, Scarpi E, Piccinini L, Martini F, Turci P, Montanari L, Nanni O, Amadori D. Palliative sedation therapy does not hasten death: results from a prospectivemulticenter study. Ann Oncol. 2009;20:1163-1169.
19. American Medical Association Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs. CEJA Report 5-A-08: Sedation to unconsciousness in end-of-life care. Available at: http://www.ama-assn.org/resources/doc/code-medical-ethics/2201a.pdf. AccessedJune30, 2011.
20. Olsen ML, Swetz KM, Mueller PS. Ethical decision making with end-of-life care: palliative sedation and withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining treatments. Mayo Clin Proc. 2010;85:949-954.
21. Schuman-Olivier Z, Brendel DH, Forstein M, Price BH. The use of palliative sedation for existential distress: a psychiatric perspective. Harv Rev Psychiatry. 2008;16:339-351.
22. Rousseau P. Existential suffering and palliative sedation: a brief commentary with a proposal for clinical guidelines. Am J Hosp Palliat Care. 2001;18:151-153.
23. Raus K, Sterckx S, Mortier F. Continuous deep sedation at the end of life and the 'natural death' hypothesis. Bioethics. 2011;25:1-8.
24. Cellarius V. Early terminal sedation is a distinct entity. Bioethics. 2011;25:46-54.
25. Claessens P, Menten J, Schotsmans P, Broeckaert B. Palliative sedation: a review of the research literature. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2008;36:310-333.
26. Hauser K, Walsh D. Palliative sedation: welcome guidance on a controversial issue. Palliat Med. 2009;23:577-579.
27. Rosengarten OS, Lamed Y, Zisling T, Feigin A, Jacobs JM. Palliative sedation at home. J Palliat Care. 2009;25:5-11.
28. Clinch A, Le B. Withdrawal of mechanical ventilation in the home: a case report and review of the literature. Palliat Med. 2011;25:1-5.
29. EdwardsMJ. Opioids and benzodiazepines appear paradoxically to delay inevitable death after ventilator withdrawal. J Palliat Care. 2005;21:299-302.
30. Berger JT. Rethinking guidelines for the use of palliative sedation. Hastings Cent Rep. 2010;40:32-38.
31. McWilliams K, Keeley PW, Waterhouse ET. Propofol for terminal sedation in palliative care: a systematic review. J Palliat Med. 2010;13:73-76.
32. Szalados JE. Discontinuation of mechanical ventilation at end-of-life: the ethical and legal boundaries of physician conduct in termination of life support. Crit Care Clin. 2007;23:317-337.
33. Boyle J. Medical ethics and double effect: the case of terminal sedation. Theor Med Bioeth. 2004;25:51-60.
34. Carr MF, Mohr GJ. Palliative sedation as part of a continuum of palliative care. J Palliat Med. 2008;11:76-81.
35. Romanelli F, Whisman T, Fink JL. Issues surrounding lethal injection as a means of capital punishment. Pharmacotherapy. 2008;28:1429-1436.
36. AVMA Panel on Euthanasia. American Veterinary Medical Association. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2001;218:669-696.
37. Zimmers TA, Lubarsky DA. Physician participation in lethal injection executions. Curr Opin Anaesthesiol. 2007;20:147-151.
38. Zimmers TA, Sheldon T, Lubarsky DA, Lopez-Mun F, Waterman L,Weisman R, Koniaris LG. Lethal injection for execution: chemical asphyxiation? PLoS Med. 2007;4:e156-e164.