Mother and Fetus: Changing Notions of Maternal Responsibility

No single area of medicine promises more acrimonious and intense debate in the coming decades than the implications of new medical technologies on the maternal-fetal relationships. This book combines comprehensive coverage of the legal and social issues raised as a result of both emerging technologies for fetal intervention and increasing knowledge of fetal development. It examines such issues as the effects of maternal behaviour on the fetus’s health, hazards in the workplace, teenage pregnancy, and the use of therapeutic and diagnostic techniques. The volume also summarises the legal/political context of policies regarding the mother’s responsibility for the welfare of the fetus and describes the current status of these issues in public law.