Your child diagnosed with Down syndrome may exhibit behavioral symptoms. This can be the result of your child not being able to communicate their needs to you or their caregivers effectively. Behavioral symptoms of Down syndrome could include: Stubbornness and tantrums.
They often have mild to moderate intellectual disability and may have specific challenges with attention span, verbal memory, and expressive communication. Behavioral problems such as stubbornness, impulsivity, and temper tantrums may be more common in children with Down syndrome.
An important study in the journal of mental health research in intellectual disabilities shows that children with Down syndrome demonstrate increased behavioral issues compared with their typical peers.
The most common mental health concerns in individuals with Down syndrome include anxiety, obsessive-compulsive behaviors, oppositional behaviors, depression, and tic disorder.
As adults with Down syndrome grow older, there is increased risk of experiencing certain common mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder and behavioral disturbances. A sudden or abrupt change in mood or behavior patterns warrants further investigation.
Common behavior problems such as aggression, tantrums and "noncompliance" are not part of DS-ASD.
Children with down syndrome tend to respond to positive behavior techniques rather than discipline. So remember, stay positive and use other tools before resorting to discipline.” while there are many things that experts and professionals can help with, simple daily actions you take at home can also have a huge impact.
Common Associated Conditions
Vision problems such as cataracts and amblyopia ("lazy eye") occur in 70% of children with Down syndrome, and hearing problems occur in about 60%. About 10% of children will have an intestinal malformation of some type, requiring surgery to correct.
Flattened facial profile and nose. Small head, ears, and mouth. Upward slanting eyes, often with a skin fold that comes out from the upper eyelid and covers the inner corner of the eye. White spots on the colored part of the eye (called Brushfield spots)
Almost one-half of babies with Down syndrome have congenital heart disease (CHD), the most common type of birth defect. CHD can lead to high blood pressure in the lungs, an inability of the heart to effectively and efficiently pump blood, and cyanosis (blue-tinted skin caused by reduced oxygen in the blood).
Those with Down syndrome nearly always have physical and intellectual disabilities. As adults, their mental abilities are typically similar to those of an 8- or 9-year-old.
Today the average lifespan of a person with Down syndrome is approximately 60 years. As recently as 1983, the average lifespan of a person with Down syndrome was 25 years. The dramatic increase to 60 years is largely due to the end of the inhumane practice of institutionalizing people with Down syndrome.
Down syndrome symptoms vary from person to person and can range from mild to severe. No matter how severe the condition is, people with Down syndrome have a widely-recognized appearance.
The answer is: Yes, a person with Down syndrome can get married and have children, and there are many successful experiences in marriage and childbearing in such category of people.
It is a common birth defect, the most frequent and recognizable form of intellectual disabilities (ID), appearing in about one out of every 700 newborns. The average intelligence quotient (IQ) of children with DS is around 50, ranging between 30 and 70.
For example, children with Down syndrome show higher rates (than typically developing children) of attention problems, social withdrawal, noncompliance, and compulsions (such as arranging objects and repeating certain actions) [2, 3] , as well as high rates of self-talk .
Although women older than 35 years of age make up a small portion of all births6 in the United States each year, about nearly one-half of babies with Down syndrome are born to women in this age group.
The following suggestions are based upon the input of many parents of children with Down syndrome. THINGS NOT TO SAY – These are the things that parents have said really upset or angered them: “I'm sorry” or any form of pity. Pity is not what new parents want or need.
It is well known that the extra chromosome 21 originates from the mother in more than 90% of cases, the incidence increases with maternal age and there is a high recurrence in young women.
Many moms report that the most difficult part of being the parent of a child with Down syndrome is the diagnosis and the immediate aftermath. Moms report thoughts and emotions they never thought they would have. Most are not prepared for the onslaught of emotions, and the intensity shocks them.
Mosaicism (or mosaic Down syndrome) exists when there are a mixture of two types of cells, some containing the usual 46 chromosomes and some containing 47. Those cells with 47 chromosomes contain an extra chromosome 21. Mosaicism is the least common form of Down syndrome.
“We certainly see some kids who are less affected than others, but we shy away from terms like 'low-functioning' and 'high-functioning,'” Pipan explains. Some children with Down syndrome have a hard time learning to walk, and others have no problem running and jumping and riding a bike.