Ethical Issue: new technologies and the modern findings in the medical field

ETHICAL ISSUES
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Abstract
It is very evident and clear that the new technologies and the modern findings in the medical field need people to reflect on some ethical queries. The reason is that these fresh discoveries can be a barrier to the form bioethical choices were actually made. The article concentrates on the findings that are made by Dr. Adrian Owen. Owen has actually found that most patients in the vegetative states which is the brain damage disorder shows signs of consciousness when they are skimmed using useful magnetic reverberation imaging.
Whereas these affected people do not reveal any external or interactive signs of awareness, they show brain activity similar to healthy volunteers when they are asked to imagine certain tasks for instance playing lawn tennis.
Additionally, Dr. Owen has found that these individuals can respond to yes/no questions by prompting them to imagine one task for "yes" and another task for "no." These findings radically question the way we think about consciousness and patients in vegetative states. Occasionally, families choose to withdraw life-sustaining interventions for patients who are permanently in vegetative states. Recently, some people have argued that such decisions should not be made before these patients undergo Owen`s fMRI technique. Others have argued that, for a number of reasons, these findings should not inform end-of-life decisions.
Introduction
The following essay explains the vegetative state which is a brain disorder due to its injury. It covers all the areas concerning the condition and the patients with the condition. It discusses about the extent to which the patient`s decision making is allowed. Some of the studies covering the condition have also been discussed in the essay.
The condition described as the vegetative manifests lack of receptiveness and consciousness caused by the malfunctioning of the cerebral hemispheres, with enough parsimonious of the diencephalon and brain stem to maintain autonomic and motor reflexes and sleep-wake cycles. Problematical reflexes may affect patients such as moving of eyes,yawning and unconditional movements to harmful stimuli but no consciousness to self or environment. The condition may also mean that situation is unconscious and wakeful for a few weeks. The prognosis of the state is done by analyzing the level of awareness in patients using imaging or scanning techniques.
The condition was first defined in 1940s by Kretschmer (Lewis, 2007). The condition occurs in different descriptions due to different implications. These include vegetative state, persistent vegetative state and continuous or permanent vegetative state. These arise due different extends of the severity and exposure time the condition. The condition may be triggered by several causes such as serious disturbing brain injury, non-traumatic and severe genetic anomaly of the central nervous system. Other factors which may trigger include bacterial, viral or fungal infection, high level of intracranial pressure indicated by tumor or abscess. Electrolyte imbalance may also cause the disorder including toxins as a causative agent. The condition in some cases remainsunnoticed though in other cases can be detected by functional neuroimaging(Lewis, 2007). The procedure in prognosis is interpreted at a high level of accuracy. This ensures the level of consciousness or awareness of the patient is determined. The condition has no a defined treatment though some drugs can be administered to managed the condition. Most of the patients suffering from the condition arise or recover from the condition within a number of few weeks.
The likelihood of recovering of the condition is determined by the extend of the injury to the brain and the age of the victim where the young ones are better placed to recover compared to the old or adults. Recapture from the condition occurs in to ways where there is recapture of consciousness and recovery of function. Recapture of consciousness is evidenced by the ability of the patient to be aware of self and the environment. Recapture of function is described by communication, ability to study and accomplish adaptive tasks, motion, self-care others. Cases of the condition are distributed in worldwide such as in United States.
Exegesis
Dr. Owen comes in with a new finding on the vegetative state on patients.
On studies on the vegetative condition including that of Dr. Owen involving use of functional magnetic resonance imaging on patients with the condition has increased the likelihood of the maintaining of the level of awareness. The findings or the identified evidence is that awareness of the patient guides whether treatment will continue or its withdrawing life-sustaining treatment.
The discovered consciousness in those severely damaged brain patients may provide reasons for them to die.In Owens findings a change of himself. In blood flow to various parts of an injured brain made Owen to believe that the patient he was dealing with was aware. The patient may grind teeth or make eye movements as seen by Owen. Many of those who have developed findings on the same differ with Owen on the arguments that the persons are awake. Owen uses a practical way to apply technology in its identification of patients. Dr. Owen hopes to advance its study so to able even to ask patients hard questions. Apart from Dr. Owen other researchers have also made findings on the vegetative condition and other brain disorders. The findings involving assessment of the patients is based or utilizes hi-tech functional magnetic resonance scanner to make the measurement of brain response to the patient. The scanner utilizes the magnetic fields or magnetic vibrations and radio waves to sense or detect electrical waves or pulses.
Experts have also found that by utilizing scans for the first time to those patients who have not shown any signs of awareness may not only understand what people are saying to them but also answer simple questions. The victims were able to give yes or no responses to simple questions.
Critical discussion
The finding of Owen has a great influence in the end-of-life decisions made by families. This has been evidenced in the case of a 57-year-old Vancouver man who had been in vegetable condition for several years. The family had different arguments on the condition of the man on end-of-life decision. The new findings of Owen on vegetative conditions made a slow move on the conclusion the family had make from the wife and husband`s side. The study of Dr. Owen gave hopes on the condition of the man. The doctors were finding it hard for the termination of the life of the patient. The withdrawing of life maintaining therapy will be dependedon the level of vegetative state or the level of brain damage. This severity may be assessed by level of consciousness to patient himself and to his environment. Although this arises controversy on legal way to deal with decisions relating to treatment of withdrawal.
Dr. Owen did a comprehensive research on the patients with vegetative conditions and this has led to adoption by man...