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Home arrow News arrow Local News arrow Rise in older mothers numbers related to Down Syndrome increase – study
Rise in older mothers numbers related to Down Syndrome increase – study E-mail
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Wednesday, 21 February 2007
A higher prevalence of Down Syndrome in the Galway between 1991 and 2000 is directly related to a significant increase in the proportion of mothers in the 30 plus age group.

Where traditionally the child with Down Syndrome was often born at the end of a large family, the UCHG study indicated that the more recent trend is that these children are often the first or second child in a family.


That’s according to a new study titled ‘The Prevalence of Down Syndrome in County Galway’, which was published in the Irish Medical Journal recently.

The study by a team from UCHG and the Brothers of Charity Services, which examined all cases of Down Syndrome in Galway between 1981 and 2000, also found that the place of the child with Down syndrome in the family has changed.

In a 1990 EUROCAT study, Galway was found to have the highest prevalence rate among the 19 European regions studied, with a crude birth prevalence rate of 19.8 per 10,000. A subsequent Irish study showed County Galway to have the highest rate among four Irish counties studied, with a crude birth prevalence rate of 23.5.

One of the aims of the study was to examine how the demographic changes in the birth rate, family size and maternal age distribution has affected the prevalence of Down Syndrome during the two decades. The study found that during the years 1981 to 2000, there were 57,051 babies born to County Galway mothers – 31,085 of whom were born in the decade from 1981 to 1990 decade and 25,966 in the 1991 to 2000 decade. There was a notable decline in the birth rate in the second, despite the overall population increase of 37,059 in the county during these two decades.

The mean age of childbearing women in County Galway increased from 29.9 in the first ten-year period to 30.7 years in the second period, while the percentage of mothers aged 35 years and over increased from 18.47 per cent to 22.78 per cent. Seventeen mothers aged 30 to 34 years had a Down Syndrome child from 1981 to 1990, while 20 mothers aged 35 to 39 years had a Down Syndrome birth during the same period. Meanwhile, 15 mothers aged 30 to 34 and 29 mothers aged 35 to 39 had a Down Syndrome child between 1991 and 2000.

The study found that there was an increased level of risk for having a child with Down Syndrome in mothers aged 35 years or older, when compared with younger mothers in both of the two ten year periods. The Risk Ratio for the years 1981 to1990 was 6.2 while that for 1991 to 2000 was 5.5. Over the 20-year period, increased maternal age was found to be significantly associated with increased risk of Down Syndrome pregnancy. It is also notable that in the first ten years of the study, nearly seven per cent of Down Syndrome babies were born to mothers 45 years and over, whereas in the second decade, this figure is reduced to one per cent. There were 153 cases of Down Syndrome in Galway over the 20-year period, 75 in the first decade, and 78 in the second.

In the first decade, the child with Down syndrome was found to be the first or second child in his/her family in 36.6 per cent of cases, and the fifth or more child in 25.3 per cent of cases. Meanwhile, in the second decade, a significant change in the pattern was recorded. Where traditionally the child with Down Syndrome was often born at the end of a large family, the UCHG study indicated that the more recent trend is that these children are often the first or second child in a family. The figures for the first or second child are 54.7 per cent, and only 9.5 per cent for the fifth or more child.

The study team recommends improved childcare and employment support for women who wish to continue in the workforce, but also wish to start their families at an earlier age. It also urges a national study to look at the overall trend in Ireland, to ensure adequate supports for Down Syndrome children and their families. In addition, the establishment of a national database to record all congenital anomalies, is also mooted.


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