‘Sharp Racial Divide’ in Life Expectancy for Those With Down Syndrome, Study Finds

There is a "sharp racial divide" in life expectancy for Americans with Down syndrome, as whites live twice as long as African Americans, according to a CDC study released June 7, the AP/Philadelphia Inquirer reports. Down syndrome is a chromosomal abnormality that causes mental retardation and places those affected at higher risk for some health problems, including heart defects and visual or hearing impairment. Researchers analyzed 34,000 Down-related deaths from 1968 to 1997 and found that the median death age for whites with Down syndrome in 1997 was 50, compared to 25 for African Americans, and 11 for other races. J.M. Friedman, a genetics professor at the University of British Columbia and the study's lead author said, "I don't think we were surprised there was a racial disparity. What did surprise us is the magnitude of this difference." Friedman added that poorer access to health care among African Americans could contribute to the disparity. Despite the racial gap, CDC officials said that the study shows "dramatic improvements" in the life expectancy for people with Down syndrome over the last 30 years, crediting the development of certain antibiotics. Also, Friedman explained, 30 years ago "it was considered inappropriate to perform surgery on a Down infant." In the 1960s, the median life expectancy for all people with Down syndrome was 2 years. Although the study showed a "gradual increase" in the median death age for whites between 1968 and 1997, Down syndrome remained a childhood killer for African Americans until the mid-1990s (AP/Philadelphia Inquirer, 6/8).