As the Ebola virus – which can kill up to 90% of its victims – grips an unprecedentedly wide swath of Africa, many are asking whether it is time to begin administering untested drugs and vaccines. But the suggestion raises difficult ethical questions, and the urgency of the situation does not leave much time for deliberation.
LONDON – As the Ebola virus grips an unprecedentedly wide swath of Africa, many are asking whether it is time to begin administering untested drugs and vaccines. Given that the disease can kill up to 90% of its victims – higher than the mortality rate from the bubonic plague – there seems to be little to lose from relaxing clinical norms. But the suggestion raises difficult ethical questions – and the urgency of the situation does not leave much time for deliberation.
LONDON – As the Ebola virus grips an unprecedentedly wide swath of Africa, many are asking whether it is time to begin administering untested drugs and vaccines. Given that the disease can kill up to 90% of its victims – higher than the mortality rate from the bubonic plague – there seems to be little to lose from relaxing clinical norms. But the suggestion raises difficult ethical questions – and the urgency of the situation does not leave much time for deliberation.