What Is Down Syndrome - Research Paper Example

To a great degree the sorts of treatment options available vary with the specific extent or severity of the condition. The most severe instances of individuals with Down syndrome have a series of congenital heart issues. In such issues extensive surgery is required as a means of ensuring their continued survival. In terms of physical impairment, oftentimes individuals with Down syndrome seek out plastic surgery as a means of correcting some of the impairment. There is also a growing body of alternative therapies for individuals with Down syndrome.

Physical therapy options include ‘Psychomotor Patterning,’ although the efficacy of this therapy remains contested (Hassold & Patterson 1999). There have also been increasing use experimental drug treatments. One of the most prominent of these is a drug called memantine (Hassold & Patterson 1999). This drug has primarily been used to Alzheimer’s but has shown a level of effectiveness in treating some of the symptoms associated with the disorder. Education While a variety of treatment options exist for Down syndrome, the most comprehensive approaches to the disorder occur through education.

In these regards, comprehensive approaches to cognitive development begin after birth. Some of the greatest challenges for this form of education are that it is impossible to entirely ascertain the individual’s ultimate cognitive abilities at birth. It follows that the education process is one of continual discovery and must be greatly tailored to the specific individual. In terms of specific educational processes, speech therapy is a prominent form of education, as it can target speech errors and increase intelligibility.

An increasing amount of scholastic environments have begun including children with Down syndrome in. While a variety of treatment options exist for Down syndrome, the most comprehensive approaches to the disorder occur through education. In these regards, comprehensive approaches to cognitive development begin after birth. Some of the greatest challenges for this form of education are that it is impossible to entirely ascertain the individual’s ultimate cognitive abilities at birth. It follows that the education process is one of continual discovery and must be greatly tailored to the specific individual.

In terms of specific educational processes, speech therapy is a prominent form of education, as it can target speech errors and increase intelligibility. An increasing amount of scholastic environments have begun including children with Down syndrome in mainstream high school environments(Hassold& Patterson 1999). Some European school systems have implemented a two-teacher system where the student participates in both mainstream classes and classes targeted for their specific impairments.

 Down syndrome is a recognized chromosomal disorder that occurs when there is at least the partial occurrence of a 21st chromosome.