PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Slomka, Jacquelyn
TI  - Withholding nutrition at the end of life: Clinical and ethical issues
DP  - 2003 Jun 01
TA  - Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine
PG  - 548--552
VI  - 70
IP  - 6
4099  - http://www.ccjm.org/content/70/6/548.short
4100  - http://www.ccjm.org/content/70/6/548.full
SO  - Cleve Clin J Med2003 Jun 01; 70
AB  - Tube feeding in terminally ill patients has become routine. Indeed, many physicians question the ethics and legality of withdrawal of nutrition and hydration—even in patients whose prospects of recovery are bleak. To avoid unnecessary pain and suffering, patients, physicians, and family members need to discuss the patient’s desires, carefully weigh the benefits and burdens of tube feeding, and examine their own beliefs and biases.