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euthanasia (u″thә-na´zhә)   an easy or painless death.
  the deliberate ending of life of a person suffering from an incurable disease, including the withholding extraordinary means or “heroic measures,” and thus allowing the patient to die. A distinction was traditionally made between positive or active euthanasia and negative or passive euthanasia, but more recently all euthanasia is considered to be active. The term forgoing life-sustaining treatment is replacing passive euthanasia.
 

active euthanasia  mercy killing; the deliberate ending of life, usually by adminstration of drugs.

passive euthanasia  the ending of life by the deliberate withholding of drugs or other life-sustaining treatment.





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