Religion and Refusal of Medical Care for Children

Two children (Kent and Brandon Schaible) have died of treatable pneumonia and dehydration because their parents (Herbert and Catherine Schaible) resorted to prayer instead of medical care.  In another particularly egregious case, members of the Faith Assembly Church denied medical care to a 4-year-old with an eye tumor the size of the child’s head.  Law enforcement officials found blood trails along the walls of the girl’s home where she, nearly blind, used the walls to support her head while navigating from room to room.  Seth Asser and Rita Swan have documented 172 cases of child deaths from preventable medical complication between 1975-1995.  The report does not include seventy-eight faith healing deaths reported in Oregon from 1955-1998, or the twelve deaths in Idaho from 1980-1998.  As recently as 2013, five child deaths in Idaho were reported from families whose religious beliefs prevented them from seeking medical treatment.  What sort of religious beliefs might possess a parent to refuse medical treatment for their child?   Christian Scientists base their refusal on the religious belief that medicine is fundamentally mistaken in thinking the ultimate cause of disease is biological, seeing the real source of disease as spiritual disorder; and a spiritual problem calls for a spiritual solution.  The reality of sickness is not denied (e.g., you really do have pneumonia), however, the ultimate cause of that pneumo...
Source: blog.bioethics.net - Category: Medical Ethics Authors: Tags: Health Care Pediatrics Author: Brummett religion syndicated Source Type: blogs

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ConclusionsThis analysis revealed a considerable burden of LD in Belgium that is vastly underestimated by surveillance data. Comparison with other European DALY estimates underlines the impact of the used data sources and methodological approaches on burden estimates, illustrating that national burden of disease studies remain essential.
Source: Archives of Public Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
CONCLUSION: Four weeks of comprehensive RMT in patients with acute stroke resulted in significantly greater improvements in both pulmonary function and respiratory muscle strength than SR. Therefore, RMT has the potential to reduce post-stroke respiratory complications. PMID: 33027217 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Prevention - Category: Rehabilitation Authors: Tags: J Cardiopulm Rehabil Prev Source Type: research
CONCLUSION: The available device and technologies may help substantially with the accommodations needed for post-stroke oral care, improving the oral health of stroke survivors. Good oral health confers benefit to overall health and well-being and could enhance recovery and rehabilitation outcomes. Nonetheless, more research is necessary to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of technology in stroke contexts. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION Oral care may be challenging after stroke due to patient fatigue, hemiparesis, cognitive impairments, and other impaired body functions. Poor oral hygiene may impact stroke re...
Source: Disability and Rehabilitation. Assistive Technology. - Category: Rehabilitation Authors: Tags: Disabil Rehabil Assist Technol Source Type: research
Shortly after the end of WWII, a British medical officer inspecting a military hospital in Germany observed a treatment for pressure injuries developed by Nazi doctors.  The officer’s name was Captain James Fulton Neil and his case report was published in the British Medical Journal along with a photograph of the unfortunate patient reproduced above.  The treatment employed suspension by wires drilled into pelvic bones, and I discovered Captain Neil’s article while researching the history of wound care. This post is a summary of my paper recently published in Advances in Skin &Wound Care that desc...
Source: Jeffrey M. Levine MD | Geriatric Specialist | Wound Care | Pressure Ulcers - Category: Geriatrics Authors: Tags: Featured Medical Articles Geriatric Medicine Pressure Injuries & Wound Care bedsore bedsores decubiti decubitus ulcer Jeff Levine MD Jeffrey M Levine MD medical history pressure sore pressure sores pressure ulcer pressure ulcers Source Type: blogs
ConclusionsDXM use among patients with aSAH did not relate to the rate of EVD and VPS placement, duration of EVD treatment, and functional disability at discharge but increased the risk of medical complications.
Source: Neurocritical Care - Category: Neurology Source Type: research
We report that electrical stimulation (ES) stimulation of post-stroke aged rats led to an improved functional recovery of spatial long-term memory (T-maze), but not on the rotating pole or the inclined plane, both tests requiring complex sensorimotor skills. Surprisingly, ES had a detrimental effect on the asymmetric sensorimotor deficit. Histologically, there was a robust increase in the number of doublecortin-positive cells in the dentate gyrus and SVZ of the infarcted hemisphere and the presence of a considerable number of neurons expressing tubulin beta III in the infarcted area. Among the genes that were unique...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
AbstractAspiration pneumonia is a common cause of morbidity and mortality in both adults and children that, however, is difficult to accurately diagnose. In current literature, there are no reports or clinical research study focused on the possible use of lung ultrasound (LUS) in the diagnosis and follow-up of aspiration pneumonia in children. In this case series, we describe clinical, laboratory, radiological results as well as detailed lung ultrasound findings of three children with severe disability and diagnosed with aspiration pneumonia. In these three cases, albeit at different times, LUS played an important role in ...
Source: Journal of Ultrasound - Category: Radiology Source Type: research
COVID-19 pneumonia is a newly recognized illness that is spreading rapidly around the world and causes many disability and deaths. Some diseases, for instance diabetes, is continuously suggested as a risk factor which contributes to the severity and mortality of COVID-19. However, to date, there are no comprehensive studies aiming to explain the exact relationship between diabetes and COVID-19. Thus, this study aims to summarize the evidence about diabetes and COVID-19 outbreak through a systematic review and meta-analysis approach.
Source: Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice - Category: Endocrinology Authors: Source Type: research
Authors: Song P Abstract Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is the third leading contributor to lost disability-adjusted life years worldwide, and this is especially true in the elderly population. In order to reduce the burden of disease, effective management of CAP is crucial to public health in terms of maintaining and promoting the health of the elderly and involves safe drug use, vaccinations, early treatment in the ICU, and health education. Since the long-term mortality of CAP is particularly high in the elderly, biomarkers and a predictive diagnostic model of CAP should be developed in future research. ...
Source: Drug Discoveries and Therapeutics - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Drug Discov Ther Source Type: research
When it comes to health concerns, the COVID-19 pandemic is top of mind for most people right now. And that’s for good reason. But there is some very good non-COVID health news that may not be getting the attention it deserves. According to the CDC, the rates of six of the top 10 causes of death in this country, which account for about three-quarters of all deaths, have been declining. That’s remarkable. And these improvements are occurring despite an aging population and an obesity epidemic that affects several health conditions. Six positive health trends Let’s look at the trends in these conditions...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Cancer Health Health trends Heart Health Source Type: blogs
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