Genetic Disorders In Prenatal Care

There are a wide variety of genetic disorders that parents face during pregnancy. Parents are faced with the terrifying news of the disorders that doctors diagnosis their unborn children. In some cases, certain disorders are not discovered until after the birth of the new baby. Due to the fact that there are a wide variety of genetic disorders, there are also different ways these disorders can be detected, as well as the different ways they affect the unborn baby, the mother, and the treatment plans. It is extremely important that the pregnant parents begin prenatal care as soon as the pregnancy is discovered. Beginning prenatal care early and continuing prenatal care throughout the course of the pregnancy can help to benefit both the baby
Throughout the process the doctor as well as the nurse and other team members will continue to provide family centered care. When providing family centered care the staff members are not only taking the thoughts and feeling of the mother, but also the thoughts and feelings of the father and other support of the mother. They are included in the teaching about the condition of the unborn child as well as options for the parents and treatment plans before the baby is born as well as after the baby is born. Medical team members practice family centered care because it is the family members who are the patient’s support team. They act as the glue for patients because support teams aid to keeping the patient together, and help to put back the pieces when the patient feel they may have lost their faith or hope. Support systems are also there to make sure the patient understands what is going on with their care and the care of the baby. Therefore it important to maintain therapeutic relationships with the patient’s support systems when helping pregnant patient’s deal with genetic disorders of their unborn
It is impossible to tell what abnormalities the baby will have because it affects each individual baby differently. The range of abnormalities are heart defects such as ventricular septal defect and atrial septal defect to problems with the kidneys. Other abnormalities resulting from Trisomy 18 include a small, abnormally shaped head, small jaw and mouth, as well as clenched fists with overlapping fingers, low set ears, and strawberry shaped head. (What is Trisomy 18?, 2015). Babies affected by this syndrome experience a slow growth before birth as well as a low birth weight. Due to the life threatening problems, many babies die before birth or within a few months after birth. (Trisomy 18 , 2012). Babies who make it to be discharged from the hospital will go home, but will have continued care in the home from nurses as well as care by their parents. A small percent of these babies go on to live past their first birthdays and some live on into adulthood, but require a full time care giver because of their developmental delays. (What is Trisomy 18?, 2015). There are three types of Trisomy 18. They are known as full, partial, and mosaic. The most common of the three types is full. With full trisomy the extra chromosome is present in every cell in the body. Partial Trisomy occurs when only part of the extra chromosome is present. This type may be caused by heredity. The last type, mosaic, occurs when