U.K. judge rules life support for brain-damaged boy can be withdrawn
LONDON -- A British judge has ruled that intensive care treatment can be withdrawn for a brain-damaged 11-month-old boy despite his parents' wishes for continued intervention. Judge Alistair MacDonald said Monday in Birmingham that doctors can stop providing life support treatment to Isaiah Haastrup.
The case had been heard in the Family Division of the High Court in London.
Specialists at King's College Hospital say further intensive treatment would be "futile, burdensome and not in his best interests."
Doctors told the court the boy had suffered "catastrophic" brain damage because of oxygen deprivation at birth.
According to BBC News, Haastrup was in a low level of consciousness. He was connected to a ventilator and could not breath or move on his own. Doctors told the judge Haastrup did not respond to stimulation.
The boy's parents, Takesha Thomas and Lanre Haastrup, say they want treatment to continue.