Evidence map›Paper›PMID 25079068›Full record

ArticleJournal of medical ethics2015

Acknowledging awareness: informing families of individual research results for patients in the vegetative state.

Mackenzie Graham, Charles Weijer, Andrew Peterson, Lorina Naci, Damian Cruse, Davinia Fernández-Espejo, Laura Gonzalez-Lara, Adrian M Owen

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Journal of medical ethics, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Mackenzie GrahamDepartment of Philosophy, Rotman Institute of Philosophy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Charles WeijerDepartment of Philosophy, Rotman Institute of Philosophy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada Department of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Andrew PetersonDepartment of Philosophy, Rotman Institute of Philosophy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada Department of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Lorina NaciDepartment of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Damian CruseDepartment of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Davinia Fernández-EspejoDepartment of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Laura Gonzalez-LaraDepartment of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Adrian M OwenDepartment of Philosophy, Rotman Institute of Philosophy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada Department of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Recent findings in cognitive neuroscience have revealed that some patients previously diagnosed as being in a vegetative state may retain some degree of covert awareness. However, it is unclear whether such findings should be disclosed to the families of these patients. Concerns about the preservation of scientific validity, reliability of results and potential harms associated with disclosure suggest that individual research results should be disclosed only under certain conditions. In the following paper, we offer four criteria for the disclosure of individual research results. Because the results of functional neuroimaging studies to detect covert awareness in vegetative patients are scientifically valid, informative and reasonably reliable and have considerable potential benefit for the patient, researchers have an obligation to disclose such results to family members. Further work is needed to develop educational materials for families and to systematically study the impact of disclosure on the families themselves.

Indexed as

AwarenessBiomedical ResearchDisclosureFamilyFemaleGuidelines as TopicHumansMaleNeuroimagingPersistent Vegetative StateReproducibility of ResultsConsciousnessInformed ConsentNeuroethicsNeuroimagingResearch Ethics

Identifiers

PMID25079068
PMCPMC4515978

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.