UK mommies keeping Down’s Syndrome babies
In this day and age when prenatal diagnostics like amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling (CVS), and prenatal genetic testing are easily available and more reliable, more and more British women are actually choosing to carry to term a baby with Down’s syndrome than abort it, according to this report in the Daily Mail.
The screening for Down’s Syndrome which started in 1989 brought about a decrease in the number of babies born with the syndrome. However, a survey by the BBC and Down’s Syndrome Association showed a reversal of this trend since 2006. The findings will be presented in the documentary on the BBC. It’s not clear whether this trend is reflected in other countries as well.
The report moved on to speculate on the reasons why more mothers actually choose to keep a baby with Down’s Syndrome.These include:
- Better acceptance and easing of social stigma associated with Down’s. This probably came about due to better public education. The popular British soap EastEnders even features a baby with Down’s Syndrome.
- Better medical treatments and quality of life. Down’s Syndrome comes with complications like congenital heart defects and retardation. Better medical care and special needs education have made life easier for people with Down’s as well as their family.
Down’s Syndrome or trisomy 21 occurs in about 1 out of every 1000 babies born. The risk for this chromosomal anomaly increases with increasing age. Currently, a new non-invasive blood test to detect chromosomal defects is being tested.
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