The Ethics of Organ Transplantation in Persons with Intellectual Disability by Lainie Friedman Ross, MD, PhD

Historically, individuals with intellectual disability and end-stage organ disease were discriminated against by transplant professionals and often excluded from transplantation waitlists. Despite anti-discrimination legislation some transplant programs continue to include intellectual disability as a relative, if not an absolute, contraindication to listing for an organ; this is true for both pediatric and adult individuals in end-stage organ disease. This commentary opposes the absolute exclusion of patients with ID and end-stage organ disease from transplantation waitlists provided that the candidates are expected to gain a pre-defined minimum benefit threshold of life-years and quality-adjusted-life years.
Source: The Journal of Pediatrics - Category: Pediatrics Authors: Source Type: research