The History of Western Ethics

Each year thousands of babies are born with Down syndrome, a congenital (genetic) disorder that typically results in mild to severe intellectual disability (mental retardation), physical deformities of the face and head, and malformations of the heart and kidneys. In some cases the heart or kidney defects are life threatening and cannot be corrected by surgery, and the baby dies soon after birth. People with Down syndrome typically have much shorter life expectancies than normal adults, and those in which the syndrome is severe are never able to care for themselves. Through diagnostic tests it is now possible to detect the presence of Down syndrome in a fetus after about 11 weeks of pregnancy. On the basis of such information, some couples decide to abort a fetus with Down syndrome. In other cases, the parents allow the baby to die by withholding surgery that could correct a life-threatening defect.