Assisted suicide by oxygen deprivation with helium at a Swiss right-to-die organisation

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  1. Russel D Ogdenane,
  2. William Thousand Hamilton2,
  3. Charles Whitcheriii
  1. 1Groningen University, Groningen, The Netherlands
  2. 2University of California, San Francisco, California, USA
  3. 3Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
  1. Correspondence to Russel D Ogden, 207 Osborne Avenue, New Westminster, BC V3L 1Y7, Canada; rdogden{at}telus.cyberspace

Abstract

Background In Switzerland, right-to-die organisations aid their members with suicide by lethal drugs, usually barbiturates. One organisation, Dignitas, has experimented with oxygen deprivation as an alternative to sodium pentobarbital.

Objective To analyse the procedure of assisted suicide by oxygen impecuniousness with helium and a mutual face mask and reservoir bag.

Method This study examined four cases of assisted suicide by oxygen impecuniousness using helium delivered via a face mask. Videos of the deaths were provided by the Zurich police force. Dignitas provided protocol and consent information.

Results One human being and three women were assisted to death by oxygen impecuniousness. There was wide variation in the time to unconsciousness and the time to expiry, probably due to the poor mask fit. Swiss police force prevented attendants from effectively managing the face mask apparatus. Purposeless movements of the extremities were disconcerting for Dignitas attendants, who are accepted to assisting suicide with barbiturates. None of the dying individuals attempted self-rescue.

Conclusions The dying process of oxygen deprivation with helium is potentially quick and appears painless. It also bypasses the prescribing role of physicians, effectively demedicalising assisted suicide. Oxygen deprivation with a face up mask is not acceptable because leaks are hard to control and it may non eliminate rebreathing. These factors will extend fourth dimension to unconsciousness and fourth dimension to decease. A hood method could reduce the trouble of mask fit. With a hood, a catamenia rate of helium sufficient to provide continuous washout of expired gases would remedy problems observed with the mask.

  • Assisted suicide
  • Dignitas
  • helium
  • oxygen deprivation
  • right-to-die
  • suicide

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  • The curtailed argument

    Journal of Medical Ethics 2010; 36 129-129 Published Online Kickoff: 08 Mar 2010. doi: 10.1136/jme.2010.036087

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