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BabyHealthDown's Syndrome testing: a parental right?
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Down's Syndrome testing: a parental right?

Down's Syndrome births are on the rise, but pre-natal testing means that a large number of parents are terminating their babies if the results are positive. Are these parents right to opt for an abortion on the basis of a disability?

More babies with Down's Syndrome are being born now than were born in the days before pre-natal testing became readily available, recent figures suggest.

The trend, reported by the BBC, is thought to be due to a change in perception of the syndrome, with parents today saying that babies affected have a better future than they may have done before.

For many, the test is simply a way for parents to plan ahead, for others it is the factor upon which affected parents choose to keep or terminate their baby.

Despite the rise in overall births, the abortion rate of babies with Down's Syndrome is still very high, with a 92 per cent termination rate of babies who test positive (2003 the most recent figure).

Is this figure justified? Is it right that parents can terminate a child on the basis of a disability, or do you think that parents deserve to be equipped with as much knowledge as medicine will allow?

Share your thoughts below...



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