Demographic differences in Down syndrome livebirths in the US from 1989 to 2006

• Published in: Prenatal diagnosis 2011-04, Vol.31 (4), p.389-394
• Main Authors: Egan, James F. X., Smith, Kathleen, Timms, Diane, Bolnick, Jay M., Campbell, Winston A., Benn, Peter A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Delivery. Postpartum. Lactation; demographic differences; Demography; Down Syndrome - epidemiology; Down Syndrome - ethnology; Down Syndrome - mortality; Down syndrome livebirths; Educational Status; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Genetics of eukaryotes. Biological and molecular evolution; Gynecology. Andrology. Obstetrics; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Live Birth - epidemiology; Live Birth - ethnology; Maternal Age; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Molecular and cellular biology; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Rate - ethnology; Pregnancy Rate - trends; Time Factors; United States - epidemiology; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0197-3851; 1097-0223
• DOI: 10.1002/pd.2702

Objective To explore demographic differences in Down syndrome livebirths in the United States. Methods Using National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) birth certificate data from 1989 to 2006 we analyzed Down syndrome livebirths after correcting for under‐reporting. We created six subsets based on maternal age (15–34 and 35–49 years old); US regions, that is, Northeast, Midwest, South and West; marital status, (married, unmarried); education, ( ≤ 12 years, ≥ 13 years); race, (white, black); and Hispanic ethnicity, (non‐Hispanic, Hispanic). We estimated expected Down syndrome livebirths assuming no change in birth certificate reporting. The percentage of expected Down syndrome livebirths actually born was calculated by year. Results There were 72 613 424 livebirths from 1989 to 2006. There were 122 519 Down syndrome livebirths expected and 65 492 were actually born. The Midwest had the most expected Down syndrome livebirths actually born (67.6%); the West was lowest (44.4%). More expected Down syndrome livebirths were born to women who were 15 to 34 years old (61 vs 43.8%) and to those with ≤ 12 years education (60.4 vs 46.9%), white race (56.6 vs 37%), unmarried (56.0 vs 52.5%), and of Hispanic ethnicity (55.0 vs 53.3%). Conclusion The percentage of expected Down syndrome livebirths actually born varies by demographics. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.