Medical Futility Blog: "Lethal Malformations" and Language of "Futility"

Medical Futility Blog: "Lethal Malformations" and Language of "Futility": In the October 2014 Seminars in Neonatal and Fetal Medicine , Dominic Wilkinson and colleagues discuss the use of language surrounding severe congenital malformations.  This seminar brings up a very important issue that is important for everyone engaged in clinical research.  The terms that are used to describe various abnormalities may inadvertently confer some type of clinical judgement.  For example, calling a condition such as anencephaly "incompatible with life" infers that a baby with the condition will not survive, even though babies with the condition can survive for a period of time.  I highly recommend listening to this seminar and giving thought to how it may apply to your line of research.