Medical science and healthcare providers are expected to make ethical and appropriate decisions to save lives, but, the scenario is a little different.

History has revealed many controversies in the field of healthcare, some of which are accidental and some are intentional. Intentional controversies happen when a decision is to be taken on ethical grounds. Every situation is different and a doctor needs to take ethical measures accordingly. Sometimes, physicians feel that ethical behaviour is not more important than the fruitful end result which can benefit the entire society. Some incidents become controversial due to a difference in the values and opinions of the people in the society.

We look at some of the medical controversies from across the globe in the year gone by.

Risk found in replacing DNA for preventing inherited diseases

In Sep-2016, a baby boy was delivered by a mother carrying a defective gene (which could have resulted in a fatal disorder in the offspring) using in vitro fertilization. This in-vitro fertilization used the mitochondrial replacement technique to eliminate the genetic defect by combining DNA from two women and one man using an approved technique.

However, a study done at the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland reveals that in 15% of the cases, fatal defects return or the child becomes more susceptible to new ailments as the defective mitochondria may not be completely replaced by healthy ones. Mitochondria divide very rapidly, therefore, the chances of mutation increase by 10-30 percent in mitochondrial genes. This study was done after the approval of the technique and thus its application has become a topic of controversy in the healthcare fraternity.

Resistance over ORBITA findings: Effectiveness of percutaneous coronary intervention questioned

Percutaneous coronary intervention is the traditional treatment for a coronary disease. In contrary, results of the ORBITA trial published in The Lancet showed that percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has a placebo effect in patients with coronary disease with no added noteworthy benefits on the symptoms or quality of life of patients.This is a small study but has a significant impact as it questions a strong belief of cardiology. The study enrolled 230 patients with ischaemic symptoms. After optimization phase, the patients were randomized to PCI and placebo group. The primary endpoint of the study was a difference in exercise time increment between groups. Results showed that PCI had not affected the exercise time.

Debate on medical use of Marijuana 

Marijuana is used medically to treat pain. The debate on its medical use has been a controversial and never-ending debate. The views on marijuana use for recreational or medical use have been evolving. In 2017, eights states of the USA and the District of Columbia had approved marijuana for recreational use and Canada has approved its legalization bill. Amidst all the controversies, the Indian Minister of Women and Child Development supported legalization of marijuana and a license was issued to the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research to cultivate cannabis for studying its use in treating epilepsy and chemotherapy-induced side effects.

To control these controversies from happening, it is important that the all the members of the healthcare fraternity are aware of the ethical principles of practice. These rules should be well enforced, and strict action should be taken in case of malpractice. Moreover, with the advancements in medicine and healthcare, it is imperative that the government makes new rules to prevent misuse of the technology.