The parents of little Titouan, born 4 months prematurely, ask for the interruption of the care that keeps him alive. For the medical team, this is not intensive resuscitation.
Since his birth on August 31, little Titouan has been on respiratory and nutritional assistance. Born almost 4 months before the expected term of pregnancy (December 18), at Saintes hospital (Charente-Maritime), he suffered internal bleeding. His parents, considering the consequences too heavy, requested the interruption of care.
Weighing barely 900 grams on the scale, Titouan is very premature. Like the 10,000 or so babies who are born like him long before the end of gestation, assistance is needed. But in the eyes of his mother, he is being kept artificially alive. She even evokes a “therapeutic relentlessness” since the cerebral hemorrhage of her son. “Our baby is permanently sedated,” she told our colleagues from Europe 1. “In any case, he will be hemiplegic. “
The medical team has a less clear-cut opinion on the question. The figures go in their direction: in France, 85% of very premature babies (born between 22 and 26 weeks of amenorrhea) survive. The caregivers therefore followed the procedure, and placed the child on an artificial respirator – to compensate for the immaturity of his lungs – and a nutrient infusion. At this time, they do not consider themselves capable of estimating the extent of the consequences that the little Titouan will undergo. But the situation is clear for them: “We are not in intensive resuscitation”, hammered Professor Fabrice Pierre, who represents the CHU of Poitiers (Vienne).
To decide, the hospital appealed to an outside ethics committee. In particular, he will have to determine whether the infant will suffer a severe handicap and whether the interruption of care is appropriate.
.
