Jeffrey Lawson's tragic story is emblematic of an outdated medical belief that premature infants do not feel pain, leading to surgical procedures performed without anesthesia. This belief persisted until recent studies demonstrated that newborns' brains, even in premature infants, react to pain in ways comparable to adults. Researchers observed specific brain activity in response to painful stimuli, suggesting that these infants are indeed capable of conscious pain experiences. This evolving understanding of infant consciousness raises critical questions about the ethics of treating very young patients and the implications for medical practices regarding anesthesia use.
Until the 1980s, surgical procedures on infants were routinely performed with little or no anesthesia, based on the belief that premature babies did not feel pain.
Research now shows that premature babies react to pain stimuli similarly to adults, indicating they possess the capacity for conscious experience of pain.
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