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Background: Decisions to withdraw life-sustaining treatment (WLST) are common in intensive care units (ICUs). Clinical and non-clinical factors are important, although the extent to which each plays a part is uncertain. Objectives: To determine whether the timing of decisions to WLST varies between ICUs in a single centre in three countries and whether differences in timing are explained by differences in clinical decision-making. Methods: The study involved a convenience sample of three adult ICUs - one in each of the UK, USA and South Africa (SA). Data were prospectively collected on patients whose life-sustaining treatment was withdrawn over three months. The timing of decisions was collected, as were patients' premorbid functional status and illness severity 24 hours prior to decision to WLST. Multivariate analysis was used to identify factors associated with decisions to WLST. Clinicians participated in interviews involving hypothetical case studies devoid of non-clinical factors. Results: Deaths following WLST accounted for 23% of all deaths during the study period at the USA site v. 37% (UK site) and 70% (SA site) (p<0.0010 across the three sites). Length of stay (LOS) prior to WLST decision varied between sites. Controlling for performance status, age, and illness severity, study site predicted LOS prior to decision (p<0.0010). In the hypothetical cases, LOS prior to WLST was higher for USA clinicians (p<0.017). Conclusion: There is variation in the proportion of ICU patients in whom WLST occurs and the timing of these decisions between sites; differences in clinical decision-making may explain the variation observed, although clinical and non-clinical factors are inextricably linked. Contributions of the study: This study has identified variation in the timing of decisions to withdraw life-sustaining treatment in adult ICUs in three centres in three different healthcare systems. Although differences in clinical decision-making likely explain some of the variation, non-clinical factors (relating to the society in which the clinicians live and work) may also play a part.
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OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were (1) to compare age at death and the intensity and cost of medical treatment for infants diagnosed prenatally or postnatally with congenital anomalies considered to be lethal. (2) To determine whether greater treatment intensity is associated with longer life. STUDY DESIGN: This is a retrospective cohort study of all fetuses and neonates with congenital anomalies classified as lethal who were diagnosed or treated at the University of North Carolina Hospitals from January 1998 to December 2003. RESULT: The cohort consisted of 192 fetuses and infants: 160 were diagnosed prenatally, 2 were diagnosed perinatally, and 30 were diagnosed postnatally. In all, 115 (72%) pregnancies were terminated. Of the liveborn infants, 75% died before 10 days of age and 90% before 4 months of age. Compared with postnatally diagnosed infants, prenatally diagnosed infants received less intense treatment (median average daily Neonatal Therapeutic Intervention Scoring System score 8.3 versus 14.0; P=0.02), at less cost (median direct cost of hospitalization $1550 versus $8474; P=0.03) and died sooner (median age at death <1 day versus 4 days; P=0.01). Greater treatment intensity did not correlate with longer survival (r=-0.04; P=0.66). CONCLUSION: Although some kinds of medical therapy may be appropriate for newborns with lethal congenital anomalies, highly aggressive interventions did not prolong survival and should not be offered. Even when pregnancy termination is not elected, infants diagnosed prenatally receive less intense care.