PP217 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis, Selective Reduction, Prenatal Diagnosis
Selective Abortion
1.
Pre-Implantation genetic diagnosis
○
In vitro fertilization (IVF)- combining egg and sperm outside of the
woman
○
Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis is performed by removing a cell
from an embryo before implantation to test for genetic
abnormalities
2.
Selective reduction
○
Selective termination- terminating some, but not all fetuses in a
multiple pregnancy, also called selective reduction
3.
Prenatal Diagnosis
○
Technology allows us to know if the child will have down syndrome,
diseases, etc
Arguments on Screening
1.
Illusory Choice
○
Lippman argues that 'despite professional guidelines to the
contrary, ultrasounds are performed on almost every pregnant
woman'
2.
Disability is socially constructed
○
Description 1: we can say the pregnancy malfunctioned, as the body
should have 'naturally selected' the fetus for abortion
○
Description 2: society has failed because it cannot accommodate
the disabled
3.
Serious genetic disorders
○
Some diseases would seriously decrease someone's quality of life
(Huntingtons)
4.
Expressivist argument
○
If you choose to terminate a pregnancy based on the result of a
prenatal diagnosis, you're saying you value the absence of
abnormality over all and any other characteristics- Malek
Prenatal Screening & Selective Abortion
Saturday, June 30, 2018
9:42 AM