Down Syndrome Research Paper

Down syndrome (DS) is a condition where extra genetic material causes issues in the way a person develops, both mentally and physically. The physical features and medical problems associated with Down syndrome can vary widely depending on each different person. While some people with DS need a lot of medical attention, others live healthy and normal lives. Though Down syndrome can't be prevented, it can be detected before a child is born. The health problems that may go along with DS can be treated however the syndrome itself cannot.
During reproduction a baby receives genetic information from both the mother and father. Usually both parents give the child 23 chromosomes each, which means the baby inherits a total of 46 chromosomes. However Down syndrome is caused by a child inheriting an extra chromosome giving them a total of 47 chromosomes. With the extra genetic material delays are caused with physical features and developments associated with Down syndrome. In more than 90% of cases, the extra copy of chromosome comes from the mother in the egg, where only 4% of the cases, the father provides the extra copy of chromosome through the sperm. In the remaining cases, the error occurs after fertilization, as the embryo grows (NDSS, 2014). …show more content…
Although screening tests aren't completely accurate, they can help identify whether you have a risk of carrying a baby with Down syndrome, but they can't identify whether your baby is defiantly going to have it or not. The process of screening tests involve multiple blood tests to measure levels of pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) and the pregnancy hormone known as human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) (Ostermaier, 2014). Abnormal levels of these things may indicate a problem with the baby. As well as an ultrasound which is used to measure an area on the back of the baby’s neck to test the amount of fluids (Ostermaier,