Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31395693›Full record

ArticleJournal of medical ethics2019

Current controversies and irresolvable disagreement: the case of Vincent Lambert and the role of 'dissensus'.

Dominic Wilkinson, Julian Savulescu

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of medical ethics, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing 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

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Artificial intelligence and medical futility.BMC medical informatics and decision making · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Observational
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

2 authors.

Dominic WilkinsonOxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-3958-8633
Julian SavulescuOxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.

Funding

Wellcome Trust 104848Wellcome Trust 203132Wellcome Trust WT 104848/Z/14/ZWellcome Trust WT106587/Z/14/ZWellcome Trust WT203132/Z/16/Z
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Controversial cases in medical ethics are, by their very nature, divisive. There are disagreements that revolve around questions of fact or of value. Ethical debate may help in resolving those disagreements. However, sometimes in such cases, there are opposing reasonable views arising from deep-seated differences in ethical values. It is unclear that agreement and consensus will ever be possible. In this paper, we discuss the recent controversial case of Vincent Lambert, a French man, diagnosed with a vegetative state, for whom there were multiple court hearings over a number of years. Both family and health professionals were divided about whether artificial nutrition and hydration should be withdrawn and Lambert allowed to die. We apply a 'dissensus' approach to his case and argue that the ethical issue most in need of scrutiny (resource allocation) is different from the one that was the focus of attention.

Indexed as

Dissent and DisputesHumansPersistent Vegetative StateRight to DieWithholding Treatmentclinical ethicsdisabilityneuroethicsprolongation of life and euthanasiaresource allocation

Identifiers

PMID31395693
PMCPMC6855788

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.