Life Sustaining Treatment Withdrawn too Soon?

Research presented a few days ago at the International Stroke Conference suggests that life-sustaining treatment may be withdrawn from patients with intracerebral hemorrhage who may have had an "acceptable clinical outcome" had their treatment been sustained.



At hospital discharge, 4% of the patients who were to have life-sustaining measures withdrawn had an "acceptable clinical outcome" (a modified Rankin Scale score of 4 or better).  The study suggests that "self-fulfilling prognostic pessimism" could play a role in decisions surrounding life support.