Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation and the Ethics of Clinical Research in Pediatrics

The emergence of an innovative treatment as standard therapy has serious legal, ethical, and economic consequences, especially in pediatrics. Since children are unable to consent to or refuse treatment for themselves, the provision of standard therapy may be legally and ethically obligatory.¹ Parents who refuse to consent to standard therapy may be accused of medical neglect and may face legal consequences.^2,3 By contrast, the use of experimental therapy is restricted by both laws and ethical norms.^4,5 When physicians propose to use experimental therapies in conducting research on children, parents may refuse to allow their children to participate and may withdraw…