FRIDAY, Dec. 4 (HealthDay News) -- In several regions across the country, one in 971 children and adolescents had Down syndrome in 2002, according to research assessing the prevalence of the condition published in the December issue of Pediatrics.
Mikyong Shin, R.N., of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and colleagues analyzed data from birth defects registries in 10 U.S. regions covering 1979 to 2003.
During this time, the researchers found that the pooled prevalence of Down syndrome at birth in these regions increased from 9.0 to 11.8 per 10,000 live births. In 2002, the pooled prevalence among children and adolescents aged 19 years and younger was 10.3 per 10,000. A higher prevalence was seen in younger than older age groups, in non-Hispanic blacks and other racial and ethnic groups than non-Hispanic whites, and in females than males.
"Because Down syndrome prevalence at birth is increasing and the median age at death for individuals with Down syndrome has increased in recent years (from 25 years in 1983 to 49 in 1997) in the United States, the number of children and adolescents who have Down syndrome and live in the United States is likely to increase over the next several years," the authors write. "As an increasing number of children and adolescents with Down syndrome age, a number of health care issues related to transition to adulthood and quality of life are likely to gain increasing prominence."
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