Growth and development

[dad777]

At what age can you stop worrying about your child having Down Syndrome?  Is this noticeable at birth?  My wife had her 1st ultrasound and the technician noticed an echogenic foci in the left ventricle.  No other markers were found.  A second ultrasound revealed no other markers.  My son just turned 7 months and he has been developing great so far.  Should I still worry if he has Down Syndrome?  Should our pediatrician have noticed anything?

[dad777]

Thank you for your reply.  My wife did not have an amnio done because we were afraid she could lose the baby.  Our doctor knew how frightened we were in the ultrasound to find a echogenic foci in our son's left ventricle.  No other markers were noticeable.  We scheduled a 2nd ultrasound and no additional markers had shown up other than the echogenic foci.  At birth, none of the nurses or doctors said anything to us.  My son is now 12 months and recently had his 1 year appointment. The doctor seemed pleased by his progress: although I think he should be walking now.  He took his first steps last week.  Based on your reply, you think we should have heard something by now suggestion whether or not our son has down syndrome.  Please reply.

[cheesebabe]

DS is not something that people just somehow "get". It is not a disease or a curse. I have a 13 year old girl with Down Syndrome that is the most amazing angel that God could have shared with me! I have been reading so much lately about parents that abort unborn babies because they have Down Syndrome, to those people..you are passing on the most precious gift from God. I, like most women had an aminio when I was pregnant and that is when I discovered my baby had DS. So, to answer the question, if your doctor didn't tell you when your child was born, then he doesn't have Down Syndrome. It is not going to just someday happen. Take care and may God bless you and your family.

[SimplyStar]

there is a sliding scale for development , I would say that with my son he was usually about 2 to 3 years behind,

[cartkai]

i am studying child development from the age of 4 years and comparing a 4 year old without down syndrome to a 4 year old with down syndrome do you have any information. many thanks. cartkai

[she1162]

I can't tell by reading all of these if your original question was answered or not. When my 16 year old was born, they ( the doctor's) came to us within hours to let us know of their suspision of him having D.S. Their eyes are almond shaped, they have a flat neck, their ears are small and lower on the face, there's a line in the palm of their hand that is normally straight instead of curved. There are a lot of other traits the doctors look for before anouncing to the parents that a child could be different than what they had expected. Perhaps you could contact your local school district and tell them of your suspicions, if he doesn't have d.s. there are a lot of other things they test. I pray your child is "normal" for you. We consider our son normal for who God intended him to be.

[clasc]

CORRECTION...............DOES NOT HAPPEN AT A LATER "STAGE"