A sunny smile, a surprised look of
slanting eyes, a button-nose and clumsy fingers ... Children with
Down syndrome are subtly similar to each other. In society, they are treated at best with caution, and parents sometimes cast sidelong glances, suspecting "indecent" behavior during pregnancy. However, this is not at all true.
Why is a baby born with Down Syndrome? The extra 21st chromosome is to blame for everything (in some cases, its additional section). But there is absolutely no fault of parents in this. It just happened so, and instead of 46, the baby had 47 chromosomes. Therefore, a child with Down syndrome can be born in any family - both marginal and the most correct. Environmental factors also have no effect on the likelihood of this syndrome. The only thing doctors are warning about is that the probability of having a sunny baby increases with increasing age of the mother. According to some reports, the age of the pope also has a certain influence (especially if he is over 42 years old).
The question of why a child is born with Down Syndrome is asked by all parents of sunny children. As already mentioned, most often this is simply a kind of “mistake of nature,” due to which chromosomes did not disperse at the very early stage of development. In very rare cases, such a syndrome develops in a baby due to the fact that mom or dad has certain changes in the karyotype and is a carrier of Robertson translocation.
And therefore, it is very important to get an answer not to the question of
why a child is born with Down syndrome, but about exactly what form of this ailment a baby has. A lot depends on this. The full and mosaic forms are an accident that with a maximum degree of probability (about 99%) will no longer happen again, and therefore parents can safely plan their next pregnancies. And translocations of the 21st chromosome lead to the emergence of the so-called family Down syndrome, in which case the likelihood that other children will be carriers of it also increases significantly.
Most recently, newborns with Down syndrome most of them left in maternity hospitals under the “parting words” of “friendly” doctors (“it will never be full”, “it's just a vegetable”, “you’ll still give birth to a new one,” “you have there are already normal children, why do you need this one ”). And staying in a public institution is simply disastrous for such kids, as, however, for others. Fortunately, today the attitude of people towards sunny children is gradually changing. In the countries of the former Soviet Union, it is somewhat slower than in the West, but nonetheless.
In addition, there are several ways to diagnose Down syndrome during pregnancy. This is an ultrasound, and screenings, and amniocentesis (the latter method is most accurate, the rest only suggest the presence of the syndrome). And in the case of an accurate confirmation of the diagnosis, a woman can decide both on the future bearing of the baby, and on termination of pregnancy.
If a child with Down syndrome is born, he will need a thorough examination. Because such peanuts quite often have heart problems that require surgical intervention. And besides this, they need love that can only be given in the family. Exclusively in this case, sunny kids will be able to prove to the whole world that they are capable of much. Unfortunately, it is impossible to predict how this or that child will develop - completely different scenarios are likely, from mild mental retardation with the ability to study under a light program in a regular school to severe forms of intellectual disability. However, love and care is something without which such kids simply cannot survive.
Why is a baby born with Down Syndrome? Parents of such babies, as well as those who somehow encounter them, say that such children are distinguished by a good disposition and a big heart that is ready to give their love to everyone in the world. That's why they are called solar. And maybe they are born in order to warm this world a little and give it boundless love ...