Fragile X Syndrome

You may have heard of diseases that result from chromosomal deviations; Down Syndrome is, perhaps, the most common of these, but<a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/outgoing/article_exit_link’);” href=http://www.njmedlaw.com/fragile-x.html> Fragile X Syndrome </a>is the most common cause of inherited mental retardation and autism. Fragile X Syndrome can be found in all racial and ethnic groups. This chromosomal disorder is characterized by mental and emotional problems such as autistic-like behavior, attention deficit disorder (ADD), aggressive tendencies, depressed affect, language problems and developmental delays. It is an incurable disorder that is found more often in boys than in girls.

Though Fragile X is an inherited disorder, people may carry the gene for it but not be affected or have any symptoms. People with the gene and no symptoms may, however, pass the syndrome onto their children. A simple blood test can detect whether or not a parent has the Fragile X Syndrome gene. If the parent is determined to be a carrier, then many different tests can be performed on the fetus to find out if it will have the syndrome. For this reason, if parents are not tested properly and they have a child with Fragile X, a wrongful birth case may exist.

While you may be familiar with the term “wrongful death,” you may not be familiar with “wrongful birth.” This term means that if proper tests had been conducted, the parents could have been warned and could have decided to terminate the pregnancy. In order to recover damages for a wrongful birth, the plaintiff’s <a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/outgoing/article_exit_link’);” href=http://www.njmedlaw.com/about.html>wrongful birth attorney </a>must prove that a medical professional’s negligence prevented the parents from knowing there was an increased risk that the child would be born with Fragile X Syndrome (or some other birth defect or genetic condition).

The plaintiffs must also prove that had they known about the genetic disorder, they would have terminated the pregnancy. Many parents may not be able to take on the emotional, physical and financial hardships that often accompany raising a severely disabled child. These claims are referred to as “wrongful birth” because the child would likely have not been born had the medical provider not been negligent.

Standards of Care for Prenatal Diagnosis

Medical professionals (usually the mother’s ObGyn doctor) should take a careful history of all pregnant women in order to identify risk factors for genetic disorders. According to ACMG Practice Guidelines, testing should be offered under these conditions:

If either parent has retardation, autism, ADD, depressed affect, aggressive tendencies, developmental delays, or language difficulties<br>
If any relative of either parent have mental retardation without an identified cause<br>

In New Jersey, the Supreme Court states that in a wrongful birth suit, the negligent doctor must provide compensation for the medical expenses and other expenses related to the child’s disorder or disease over the child’s lifetime.

If your child was born with Fragile X Syndrome in New Jersey because pre-natal testing was not conducted, you may have a valid legal claim.

Please visit the website of<a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/outgoing/article_exit_link’);” href=http://www.njmedlaw.com/index.html> New Jersey wrongful birth attorneys Weiss & Paarz, P.C.</a> today to learn more.

Tagged with: Fragile • Syndrome

Filed under: Prenatal Depression Symptoms

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