Pregnancy autonomy and paternalism

Modern medicine is increasingly aware of the significance of patient autono my in making treatment choices. This would seem to be particularly importan t where the therapy requested was "voluntary" as in fertility treatment or cosmetic surgery. However; the Hippocratic doctrine "Primum non nocere", se ems especially relevant where the treatment sought may have a low chance of a successful outcome or even be life-threatening. Mrs A's case demonstrate s the difficulty faced by the physician who wants to maximise her patient's autonomy, but "Above all, do no harm".