Neonatology units are able to keep newborns alive who would not have been able to survive prior to recent medical advances. But some of these infants are so severely handicapped that health professionals are calling for a debate on actively ending their lives.

Now, doctors at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecology in London are calling upon health professionals to debate the ethics of permitting active euthanasia to end the lives of the most severely disabled newborns -- those that prior to recent medical advances would not have been able to survive.

One potentially positive outcome of such a policy would be fewer late abortions, the doctors suggested, since patients might opt to wait until the infant's birth to make a more informed decision.

Those opposed to the idea in principle fear that it could lead to a society in which some lives are valued above others.

The Royal College stressed that it has not taken a position on whether to permit active euthanasia of severely disabled newborns but rather is encouraging an open debate on the subject.

Some advocates argue that mercy killings of severely disabled infants already are taking place in England, despite the fact that the practice is illegal. The Netherlands permits euthanizing newborns with certain severe, incurable conditions, including some that cause the afflicted infants great pain and suffering.