Analgesics, sedatives and neuromuscular blockers as part of end-of-life decisions in Dutch NICUs

Background: Clinicians frequently administer analgesics and sedatives at the time of withholding or withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment in newborns. This practice might be regarded as intentionally hastening of death. Objective: To describe type, doses and reasons for administering medications as part of end-of-life decisions in the Dutch neonatal intensive care units. Design and setting: We reviewed the medical files of 340 newborn deaths with a preceding end-of-life decision over a 12-month period to describe the use of analgesics, sedatives and/or neuromuscular blockers. The neonatologi... Mehr ...