Cultic Studies Journal, Volume 17, 2000, Page 6
In other situations, a diagnostic group could be identified, but not a specific disorder. A
child with acute lymphocytic leukemia presenting for medical attention in 1977 would have
an expected 3-year survival of 74%18 and 5-year survival 50%. Thus this child would be
placed into the good outcome group. But a child with a nonspecific leukemia could only be
assigned based on overall outcome for all types of the disease and was thus placed into the
fair group.
In a few instances, judgment based on clinical experience had to be applied. For example,
the data in all cases of renal failure were not adequate to determine an etiology for the end-
state disease. However, they were sufficient to exclude active processes such as Lupus or
cancers. All of the teenagers in that group seemed to be good dialysis candidates, ensuring
a 90% chance of long-term survival. Thus, the prognosis for their condition was
considered excellent. In any situation in which the heterogeneity of clinical presentations
made a simple, direct classification difficult, such as in the case of a foreign body aspiration,
the most conservative classification that seemed reasonable was assigned.
Infants with fetal demise were placed in favorable prognostic groups only if adequate
inspection or autopsy excluded major malformations. Although in utero demise can happen
under obstetrical supervision, close monitoring improves detection and treatment of high-
risk circumstances that lead to fetal loss. The expected outcome of a third trimester
pregnancy is a live born, surviving infant, and thus, for the purpose of this review, expected
outcome with care is excellent. Likewise, many of the preterm births might have been
delayed with prenatal care or had successful neonatal supportive care. Thus, the expected
outcome of preterm infants and stillborns was considered good.
Table 1
Classification of expected outcomes with preventive or remedial medical care
Classification Criteria
Excellent 90% expected survival
Good 50%-89% expected survival
Fair 10%-49% expected survival
Some benefit 10% expected survival but expectation for pain
and suffering reduction under medical care
No benefit No significant improvement in outcome expected
with medical care
Some of the infants studied were given the legal term stillborn on death certificates. In
many cases, however, autopsy reports and witness statements indicated that death
occurred during labor or delivery from causes that would have been easily prevented or
treated with skilled assistance. Thus, for the purposes of this study, these perinatal deaths
were listed in categories other than fetal demise.
Results
Of 201 cases reviewed, 14 lacked sufficient information to be certain of the cause of death.
In 15 cases, it could not be established that exclusive reliance on faith healing contributed
to the demise. This left 172 children for evaluation.

Cultic Studies Journal, Volume 17, 2000, Page 7
Childhood Fatalities
The diagnoses of 113 children who died after their neonatal period are summarized in Table
2. Of the 98 children who did not have cancer, 92 would have had an excellent prognosis
with commonly available medical and surgical care and 4 would have had a good outcome.
Only 2 would not have clearly benefited from care. Many histories revealed that symptoms
were obvious and prolonged. Parents were sufficiently concerned to seek outside assistance,
asking for prayers and rituals from clergy, relatives, and other church members. For
example, a 2-year-old child aspirated a bite of banana. Her parents frantically called other
members of her religious circle for prayer during nearly an hour in which some signs of life
were still present. In another case, a 6-week-old infant, weighing a pound less than at
birth, died from pneumonia. The mother admitted giving the infant cardiopulmonary
resuscitation several times during the 2 days before the infant‘s death. In one family 5
children died of pneumonia before the age of 20 months, 3 before the study period.
Although this raises the possibility of genetic disorders such as cystic fibrosis, immune
deficiency, or asthma, many such conditions have a good prognosis with treatment. Their
mother was a nurse before joining a church with doctrinal objections to medical care.
One father had a medical degree and had completed a year of residency before joining a
church opposed to medical care. After 4 days of fever, his 5-month-old son began having
apneic episodes. The father told the coroner that with each spell he ―rebuked the spirit of
death‖ and the infant ―perked right back up and started breathing.‖ The infant died the
next day from bacterial meningitis.
For the children with tumors, available medical care would have given them a reasonable
chance for long-term survival and reduction of pain and suffering. A 2-year-old boy with
Wilms‘ tumor had a primary that weighed 2.5 kg, approximately one sixth of his body mass.
A 12-year-old girl was kept out of school for 7 months while the primary osteogenic
sarcoma on her leg grew to a circumference of 41 inches and her parents relied solely on
prayer. A timely diagnosis would have allowed at least a modest chance for survival.
Table 2
Child fatalities associated with religion-motivated medical neglect
Diagnoses N Ages (Years Expected
Unless Specified) Outcome
General or miscellaneous:
Cashexia, gastric aspiration 1 9 Excellent
Dehydration 6 4mo, 5mo,1,5,8,12 Excellent
Diabetes, type 1 12 3,7,10,10,11,12,12,
13, 13,15,15,16 Excellent
Epilepsy, withheld
medications 1 17 Excellent
Burns, 50% total burn
Surface Area 1 1 Good
Hydrocephaly, myelomen-
ingocoele 1 2 mo Excellent
Foreign body aspiration 1 2 Good
Renal failure 3 15, 15, 15 Excellent
Trauma, motor vehicle accident 1 2 No benefit