By Crystal Collazo, Lily Yu, Alanna Vona

What Is Down Syndrome? Down Syndrome is a disorder that can vary from severities of mild to extreme. It affects your physical features and your mental capacity.

Characteristics Characteristics of Down Syndrome are: Deep creases in the palm of the hand. White spots on the iris or the eye. Below-average intelligence. Other health problems found in people with Down Syndrome are congenital heart disease and hearing issues, intestinal problems.

The Genetic Cause Down Syndrome is not a hereditary disorder. If you have a Down Syndrome child, there is a more likely chance of having another Down Syndrome child. Down Syndrome occurs when an extra copy of the 21 st chromosome. This is called “disjunction.” Disjunction is the separation of chromosomes or chromatids during anaphase of mitosis or meiosis.

Statistics Here are some statistics about Down Syndrome: 88% of the time, the third chromosome is the mothers’. 12% it’s the fathers’ 66-89% of Down Syndrome patients have hearing loss in one ear The risk of pneumonia is 62 times higher in Down Syndrome Here are some statistics about Down Syndrome: T here is a 1 in 1000 chance of a woman under 30 years old to have a Down Syndrome baby There is a 1 in 25 chance of a woman older than 45 to have a Down Syndrome baby (Older women have a much higher risk or carrying a down syndrome baby). 88% of the time, the third chromosom e is the mothers'8% of the time, the third chromosom e is the fathers'66% - 89% of Down Syndrome patients have hearing loss in at least one ear.The risk of pneumonia is 62 times higher in Down Syndrome patientsThe risk of leukemia is times higher in Down Syndrome patients3 - 13% of Down Syndrome patients are prone to seizures.

Identification/Diagnosis The identification of Down Syndrome is from “disjunction” which from earlier means a third copy of the 21 st chromosome. Family trees and genetics cannot specify if you are going to have a Down Syndrome child. Down Syndrome is not hereditary. The diagnosis of Down Syndrome cvan be made beforehand, by a fetal diagnosis.

Fetal Diagnosis One way of finding out you have a Down Syndrome child before it is born is a fetal diagnosis. There is a small risk of a miscarriage. One of the common tests is an amniocentesis. The most common screening test is the alpha-fetoprotein screening test, which is also known as AFP.

Treatments There are no known cures for Down Syndrome. In the future there may be a cure, but today we are without the technology. While there might not be treatments there are plenty of therapies. Although, scientists are beginning to understand which genes on chromosome 21 cause which characteristics of Down Syndrome.

Therapies These are only some ways a child with Down Syndrome can be helped with: Physical Therapy/Occupational Therapy Speech Individual attention at school Encouragement and Education Down Syndrome patients should also be included in family and community life.