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Withholding Treatment MeSH Descriptor Data 2025


MeSH Heading
Withholding Treatment
Tree Number(s)
E02.760.952
N02.421.585.952
Unique ID
D028761
RDF Unique Identifier
http://id.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/D028761
Annotation
human only; EUTHANASIA, PASSIVE: do not coord with WITHHOLDING TREATMENT unless particularly discussed
Scope Note
Withholding or withdrawal of a particular treatment or treatments, often (but not necessarily) life-prolonging treatment, from a patient or from a research subject as part of a research protocol. The concept is differentiated from REFUSAL TO TREAT, where the emphasis is on the health professional's or health facility's refusal to treat a patient or group of patients when the patient or the patient's representative requests treatment. Withholding of life-prolonging treatment is usually indexed only with EUTHANASIA, PASSIVE, unless the distinction between withholding and withdrawing treatment, or the issue of withholding palliative rather than curative treatment, is discussed.
Entry Term(s)
Cessation of Treatment
Withdrawing Care
Withdrawing Treatment
See Also
Resuscitation Orders
Public MeSH Note
2002; for WITHDRAWING CARE see EUTHANASIA, PASSIVE 1999-2001
History Note
2002; for WITHDRAWING CARE use EUTHANASIA, PASSIVE 1999-2001
Date Established
2002/01/01
Date of Entry
2001/07/25
Revision Date
2015/06/29
Withholding Treatment Preferred
Withdrawing Care Related
Withdrawing Treatment Related
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