Ethical Issues in Cardiovascular Medicine

Cardiovascular medicine—the diagnosis and treatment of congenital and acquired diseases of the heart, major arteries, and veins—has seen rapid change in diagnosis, treatment, and the organization of practice in the last half of the twentieth and the beginning of the twenty first century. The complexity of these developments has resulted in increasing subspecialization, and many practitioners are challenged to stay abreast with the latest developments in cardiology. These changes also bring with them various ethical challenges. The chapters in this volume are divided by five broad areas of practice: beginning-of-life, end-of-life, transplantation and allocation of expensive or scarce resources, professionalism, and research. The case-based approach presented across the volume provides a perspective that will allow readers to reason through current and future ethical issues as they arise in this rapidly changing field.

Ethical Issues in Cardiovascular Medicine will be of interest to researchers working in bioethics, clinical ethics, and the philosophy of medicine, as well as practicing physicians, nurses, and students who work in cardiovascular medicine.