To the Editor: In the November-December 2010 issue, the Seattle Growth Attenuation and Ethics Working Group ("Navigating Growth Attenuation in Children with Profound Disabilities") analyzed the arguments for and against growth attenuation in children with permanent, profound intellectual disabilities and identified conditions under which its use may be ethically acceptable. The working group's conclusion is based on a particular construction of the issue that is not always justified. It focuses on the possibility that growth attenuation will increase children's involvement in family social and recreational activities. The critique of the biomedical model of disability, however, highlights the potential gap between interventions on the body and social outcomes.
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