Two articles in this issue ofJAMA 1, 2 make an important contribution to the growing debate
about medical futility. The authors present a strong case that futile resuscitation need not be
offered to patients and their families and may be denied when they request it. I have argued
elsewhere that physicians might unreasonably diminish patient autonomy by acting on
poorly defined notions of futility. 3 These articles make an equally important observation: by
offering life-sustaining treatment that they consider futile, physicians may actually undermine …