Essay On Down Syndrome

Down syndrome is the most common birth defect in the United States and occurs in about 1 in every 800 infants. This birth defect does not have any treatments to cure the disease. This disease was discovered in 1866 and named after the physician who discovered it, John Langdon Down. There are three different types of Down syndrome, the most common being trisomy 21. Trisomy-21 is an extra copy of the 21st chromosome. Translocation is the next most common form of Down syndrome. A part of or the entire 21st chromosome is attached to another chromosome. The last form of Down syndrome is called Mosaic Down syndrome. In this form some cells have an extra chromosome 21 while some cells have the regular two. Sometimes problems occur before fertilization, as in the case of trisomy 21 and translocation, when an egg or sperm cell divides incorrectly leaving it with an extra copy of chromosome 21 or apiece of chromosome 21 breaks off and attaches to another chromosome. Unlike trisomy 21 and translocation down syndrome, mosaic down syndrome occurs after fertilization. The likelihood of having a child with Down syndrome increases as the mother gets older. According to the American Pregnancy Association the risk at the mothers age of 20 is 1:1600, 25 is 1:1300, 30 is 1:1000, 35 is 1:365, 40 is 1:90 and 45 is 1:30 (APA). Down syndrome is a life long disease but a disease that many affected individuals live well into adulthood.
Down syndrome affects nearly 350,000 people in the United States. Individuals who have the disease down syndrome have affected physical appearances which include: flattened faces, almond shaped eyes slanting upward, short neck, small ears, small hands and feet, white spots on the iris, shortened stature in childhood and a...

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...sk for certain birth defects that deal with the brain and spine. Another way to prevent Down syndrome is with genetic engineering. With an in vitro fertilization doctors can test the eggs of a woman to determine if they are carriers of certain genetic diseases. After determination doctors only use embryos that do not carry the affected genes and then implant the embryos into the woman. This major medical breakthrough can prevent diseases that are incurable, such as Down syndrome.
Down syndrome is a disease that affects the 21st chromosome by either having an extra copy, located somewhere else or only certain cells containing the extra chromosome while other cells do not. The disease is incurable but is not fatal. New breakthroughs in science can help prevent the disease by in vitro fertilization and making sure the disease is not in the embryos before implantation.