A U.S. federal appeals court has rejected a request by the parents of brain-damaged Florida woman Terri Schiavo to have her feeding tube reconnected.
In its ruling Wednesday, the court in Atlanta said there is no denying the tragedy that has befallen Mrs. Schiavo. But the court said her parents "failed to demonstrate a substantial case on the merits of any of their claims."
A lower court judge in Florida rejected the parents' request on Tuesday. The parents' attorneys say they will now appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Mrs. Schiavo's family members say she has grown increasingly weak since her feeding tube was disconnected on Friday.
The 41-year-old woman has been in what doctors call a persistent vegetative state since a 1990 heart attack.
Her parents have been engaged for years in a legal battle with her husband, Michael, who maintains his wife told him that she would not want to be kept alive artificially.
Information for this report is provided by AP.
