Prevention Of Down Syndrome

There is no way to prevent Down syndrome. However, if you are a high risk for a child with Down syndrome or you already have a child with Down syndrome, you might want to consult a genetic counselor before becoming pregnant.

A genetic counselor can help you understand the possibilities of having a child with Down syndrome. He or she may also explain the prenatal tests that are available and help you understand the advantages and disadvantages of testing.

Treatment Of Down Syndrome

Early intervention for infants and children with Down syndrome can make a difference in achieving their potential and quality of life.

Early intervention programs

Ask your doctor for early intervention programs in your area. These specialized programs - for children with Down syndrome has attracted an early age appropriate sensory, motor and cognitive functions - are available in most states.

Programs vary from place to place, but usually involve therapists and educators, whose goal is to help your child develop motor skills, language, social skills and self-help skills.

Management Team

If your child has Down syndrome, you probably have a team of experts, depending on the particular needs of the child, to give your child care and help them develop skills as fully as possible. In addition to your primary care pediatrician, your team may include:

A pediatric cardiologist

A pediatric gastroenterologist

Children's endocrinology

Pediatric Development

My audiologist

Physiotherapist

Speech therapist

Occupational Therapist

A neurologist

What to Expect

Generally, normal children with Down syndrome meet developmental milestones, but it may take longer than a child without Down syndrome. For example, children with Down syndrome take twice as long to sit, crawl, walk or talk. But early intervention programs, started as quickly as possible, provide children with Down syndrome the best chance of success.

Symptoms Of Down Syndrome

Children with Down syndrome have distinctive facial appearance. Although all children with Down syndrome have the same characteristics, some of the most common are:

Flattened facial features

Small head

Short neck

Protruding tongue

The upward slanting eyes, unusual for an ethnic group of children

Unusually shaped ears

Down children can also be:

Low muscle tone

Broad hands and short with a single crease in the palm of the hand

Relatively short fingers

Excessive flexibility

Infants down can be a medium size, but usually grow slowly and are shorter than other children the same age. In general, the stages of development as sitting and crawling, occurs in about twice the age of children without impairment. Children up to a certain degree of mental retardation, usually mild to moderate range.

Causes Of Down Syndrome

Human cells normally contain 23 pairs of chromosomes. One chromosome of each pair is your father, your mother the other.

Down syndrome results when one of the three divisions of cells with abnormal chromosome 21 occurs. All three cell division, causing abnormalities of genetic material from chromosome 21 more, which corresponds to the characteristics and developmental problems of Down syndrome. Three genetic variations can cause Down syndrome are:

Trisomy 21. Over 90 percent of the time, Down syndrome is caused by trisomy 21. A child with trisomy 21 has three copies of chromosome 21 - instead of the usual two copies - in every cell of it. This form of Down syndrome is caused by abnormal cell division during development of the sperm cell or egg.

Mosaic Down Syndrome. In this rare form of Down syndrome children have some cells with an extra copy of chromosome 21. This mosaic of normal and abnormal cells is caused by abnormal cell division after fertilization.

Translocation Down syndrome. Down syndrome can also occur when part of chromosome 21 should be attached to (another) to another chromosome, before or understanding. Children with translocation Down syndrome have two normal copies of chromosome 21, but also other material from chromosome 21 onto another chromosome. This form of Down syndrome is rare.

There are no known behavioral and environmental factors that cause Down syndrome.

And 'hereditary?

Most of the time, Down syndrome is not hereditary. And 'caused by an error in cell division during development of the sperm egg or embryo.

Translocation Down syndrome is the only way the disease can be transmitted from parents to children. However, only 4 percent of children with Down syndrome have a translocation. And only half of these children inherited one of their parents.

When translocations are inherited, the mother or the father takes the balanced translocation, which means he or she has rearranged a bit of genetic material, but not the extra genetic material. A balanced carrier has no signs or symptoms of Down syndrome, but he or she may happen to children translocation.

The opportunity to spend depends on the translocation of the sex of the parent who carries the rearranged chromosome 21:

If the parent is the carrier, the risk is about 3 percent.

If the mother is the carrier, the risk is 10 to 15 percent.

Down Syndrome Overview

Down Syndrome

Down syndrome is a genetic disease that causes life-long mental retardation, developmental delays and other problems. The severity of Down syndrome varies, the problems of development in order to vary from moderate to severe.

Down syndrome is the most common genetic cause of learning difficulties in children.

A better understanding of Down syndrome and early intervention make a big difference in life for children and adults with Down.