Abstract
Informed consent is essential for bioethical considerations when physicians treat severely neurologically disturbed children. Because these patients are immature for their decision- making, proxy consent must be given to their physicians by their guardian to accept within agreeable limits of treatments and care for them. Prior to obtaining the consent, given by their guardians, physicans are obliged to provide their guardians with necessary informations regarding patients' physical conditions and details of procedures for proposed treatments, as well as possible risks involved in these treatments and care to be provided. Clinical applications of bioethical considerations are given to the patients with following diseases: spina bifida cystica and other neural tube defects, congential metabolic disorders such as cretinism and phenylketonuria, malignant tumors such as neuroblastoma and retinoblastoma, and intractable epilepsy. Bioethical considerations are also given to prenatal diagnosis for early discovery, diagnosis and possible treatments of severely neurologically disturbed fetuses.
