Down syndrome: Expert recommends antenatal care
Down syndrome: Expert recommends antenatal care
By Lydia Ngwakwe
Down syndrome
Lagos, May 25, 2018 (NAN) Dr Victor Amamasi, a Lagos based gynaecologist, has advised expectant mothers to attend antenatal in recognised hospitals to stem cases of Down syndrome in babies.
Amamasi told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Friday that most hospitals do not go as far as asking about women’s past which was the reason most children are born with disability.
He also advised pregnant women to ensure that they registered for antenatal in recognised hospitals where their history would be taken down to prevent them from having babies with Down syndrome.
According to him, they (women) feel if they do so, it will mean digging deep into women’s past as well as their families.
“It is very important for a pregnant woman to register in a recognised hospital where there is a good obstetrician, not just a private practitioner whereby you have only one person doing everything.
“A hospital that when you go to register for pre-birth, your information will be taken note.
“History taking is very necessary in order for the medical doctor to know if you once had a Down syndrome baby in your family or there was any disability in your family,’’ Amamasi said.
He also advised women with such history to first go for diagnosis as a way of helping the child and the mother, saying Down syndrome diagnosis is affordable.
He said the test could only be done on women depending on their past history of having such a baby.
He also said that asides history taking, a woman’s age could also contribute to her having such a baby, saying the older she gets, the more the risk of her having a Down syndrome baby.
Amamasi added that the test could be almost 100 per cent accurate like blood test, amniocentesis and ultrasound.
Besides, he enjoined women to always listen to doctor’s advice, saying though “we are not here to force our decisions on people but, we are like counselors and advisers, all we do is to tell you about the hazards in your insistence’’.
He said Down syndrome was a genetic disorder not caused by witchcraft as some people think, adding that such a child could be supported by being enrolled in special school where she could get special care and attention.
The gynaecologist said that a child with Down syndrome could live a normal life if encouraged to be with the right people at the right time and in the right environment. (NAN)
LED/CHOM/MST
Edited by Chioma Ugboma/Muhammad Suleiman Tola