Category FAQs Search : Special Needs Education
Question: Risk factors - Down Syndrome
Answer: Some parents have a greater risk of having a baby with Down syndrome. Risk factors include:
* Advancing maternal age. A woman's chances of giving birth to a child with Down syndrome increase with age because older eggs have a greater risk of improper chromosome division. A woman's risk of conceiving a child with Down syndrome increases after 35 years of age. However, most children with Down syndrome are born to women under age 35 because younger women have far more babies.
* Being carriers of the genetic translocation for Down syndrome. Both men and women can pass the genetic translocation for Down syndrome on to their children.
* Having had one child with Down syndrome. Parents who have one child with Down syndrome and parents who have a translocation themselves are at an increased risk of having another child with Down syndrome. A genetic counselor can help parents assess the risk of having a second child with Down syndrome.
(Source: Mayo Clinic, 09 Dec 2020)
Source Link: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/down-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20355977