Through the process of becoming a mature individual, one usually notices that not every person is exactly alike. People around the world look differently, act differently, sound differently, and think differently. However, it is important to realize that one person is not limited of their worth due to a difference of his that appears strange to the rest of the world. Mental disabilities are more common now more than ever; although these disabilities are a dysfunction of the brain, they might also appear through the outward appearance. Many mental disabilities stand discovered, but most of my experience is with Down syndrome. Down syndrome is the most common of the chromosomal conditions since over 6,000 babies bear with the disability in the …show more content…
Down syndrome has referred to for centuries, but it was not until the nineteenth century that in-depth studies on the disease were made by an English physician. In 1866, John Langdon Down became the “father” of the syndrome due to his scholarly work accurately describing a person affected by the disease (“What is Down Syndrome?” 1). The English physician receives credit for the discovery due to his actual understanding of the syndrome. In addition, other scientists have studied and furthered the knowledge we have on the syndrome (“What is Down Syndrome?” 1). Thankfully, the National Down Syndrome Society states in their article, “In recent history, advances in medicine and science have enabled researchers to investigate the characteristics of people with Down syndrome” (“What is Down Syndrome?” 1). Comforting it is, research remains active on this disease to better the lives and treatments of the affected …show more content…
Without viewing the chromosomal structure, one could not determine the type of Down syndrome that affects a patient. The most common type of Down syndrome is Trisomy 21. One article states, “About 95% of people with Down syndrome have Trisomy 21. With this type of Down syndrome, each cell in the body has 3 separate copies of chromosome 21 instead of the usual 2 copies” (“Facts about Down Syndrome” 1). Another type of the syndrome is Mosaic. The article also states, “This type affects about 2% of the people with Down syndrome. Mosaic means mixture or combination. For children with mosaic Down syndrome, some of their cells have 3 copies of chromosome 21, but other cells have the typical two copies of chromosome 21. Children with mosaic Down syndrome may have the same features as other children with Down syndrome” (“Facts about Down Syndrome” 1). Lastly, the third type of Down syndrome is Translocation; moreover, this is the only genetically linked type of the syndrome. Also stated in the article, “This type accounts for a small percentage of people with Down syndrome (about 3%). This occurs when an extra part or a whole extra chromosome 21 is present, but it is attached or “trans-located” to a different chromosome rather than being a separate chromosome 21” (“Facts about Down Syndrome”