Down Syndrome News

June 26, 2025

Top Headlines

Iron Overload: The Hidden Culprit Behind Early Alzheimer’s in Down Syndrome

June 21, 2025 — USC researchers have uncovered a hidden driver behind the early and severe onset of Alzheimer's in people with Down syndrome: iron overload in the brain. Their study revealed that individuals with ...

Singing to Babies Improves Their Mood

May 30, 2025 — Singing to your infant can significantly boost the baby's mood, according to a recent study. Around the world and across cultures, singing to babies seems to come instinctively to caregivers. Now, new findings support that singing is an easy, safe, ...

Got Data? Breastfeeding Device Measures Babies' Milk Intake in Real Time

May 14, 2025 — New device can give peace of mind and reduce anxiety for breastfeeding moms. It uses bioimpedance, which is currently used to measure body fat, and streams clinical-grade data to a smartphone or tablet in real time. Developed by physicians and ...

Even Light Exercise Could Help Slow Cognitive Decline in People at Risk of Alzheimer's

Apr. 24, 2025 — In a landmark clinical trial people at risk for Alzheimer's who exercised at low or moderate-high intensity showed less cognitive decline when compared to those receiving usual ...

Study Identifies New Method for Improving Lung Growth and Function in Preterm Infants

Apr. 18, 2025 — A clinical trial conducted in a neonatal intensive care unit has identified a new treatment protocol to improve lung growth and function among preterm ...

Perceiving One's Own Body: Babies Sense Their Heartbeat and Breathing

Apr. 7, 2025 — Body signals such as heartbeat and breathing accompany us constantly, often unnoticed as background noise of our perception. Even in the earliest years of life, these signals are important as they contribute to the development of self-awareness and ...

Exercise as an Anti-Aging Intervention to Avoid Detrimental Impact of Mental Fatigue

Apr. 4, 2025 — Retired adults who habitually exercised outperformed sedentary adults in physical and cognitive ...

Earliest Stages and Possible New Cause of Stomach Cancer Revealed

Mar. 19, 2025 — Scientists have systematically analyzed somatic mutations in stomach lining tissue to unpick mutational processes, some of which can lead to cancer. The team also uncovered hints of a potential new cause of stomach cancer that needs further ...

Study Suggests New Molecular Strategy for Treating Fragile X Syndrome

Feb. 20, 2025 — A new study shows that enhancing activity of a specific component of 'NMDA' receptors normalizes protein synthesis, neural activity and seizure susceptibility in the hippocampus of fragile X lab ...

ECG Tests May Someday Be Used by AI Model to Detect Premature Aging and Cognitive Decline

Jan. 31, 2025 — An artificial intelligence (AI) model designed to predict a person's biological age (age of body cells and tissues) based on electrocardiogram (ECG) data found a strong association between ECG-age ...

Preterm Babies Receive Insufficient Pain Management: Study

Jan. 27, 2025 — A large proportion of babies born very early need intensive care, which can be painful. But the healthcare system fails to provide pain relief to the full extent. This is shown by the largest survey to date of pain in neonatal ...

Uncovering the Role of Y Chromosome Genes in Male Fertility in Mice

Jan. 23, 2025 — Researchers have uncovered which genes on the Y chromosome regulate the development of sperm and impact fertility in male mice. This research could help us understand why some men don't produce enough sperm and are ...

Latest Headlines

updated 12:49pm EDT

SIDS Discovery Could ID Babies at Risk of Sudden Death

Jan. 22, 2025 — New research revealing the fingerprints of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome within blood samples could open the door to simple tests to identify babies at ...

Drinking Coffee May Help Prevent Mental Decline in People With Atrial Fibrillation

Dec. 20, 2024 — A study of more than 2,400 people with atrial fibrillation, who had an average age of 73, found that drinking more than five cups of caffeinated ...

Surprising Patterns in Infant Growth After Gestational Diabetes Exposure

Nov. 21, 2024 — A new study reveals surprising findings about how babies exposed to gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) grow during their first year of ...

Cognitive Decline and Loneliness Linked in Older Adults Over Short Time Periods

Nov. 12, 2024 — Loneliness and cognitive performance were related in the short term for older adults, according to a new ...

Education, Occupation, and Wealth Affect the Risk of Cognitive Impairment

Nov. 2, 2024 — Socioeconomic factors such as education, occupation, and wealth influence the likelihood of developing cognitive impairment or dementia in later life and whether a person is likely to recover, finds ...

A Common Steroid Therapy May Influence Brain Development in Preterm Infants

Nov. 2, 2024 — Antenatal corticosteroids (ACS) are an established therapy for pregnant women at risk of preterm birth. Researchers have found that babies given ACS had notably smaller volumes of two key brain ...

Increased Autism Risk Linked to Y Chromosome, Study Finds

Oct. 17, 2024 — Increased risk for autism appears to be linked to the Y chromosome, a study has found, offering a new explanation for the greater prevalence of autism in ...

Heat Stress May Still Affect Babies Once Born, First Evidence Suggests

Oct. 17, 2024 — Exposure to high levels of heat may both impact the growth of fetuses during pregnancy and infants up to the age of ...

Babies Born After Fertility Treatment Have Higher Risk of Heart Defects, Study Suggests

Sep. 29, 2024 — The risk of being born with a major heart defect is 36% higher in babies who were conceived after assisted reproductive technology, such as in vitro ...

Lower Neighborhood Opportunity May Increase Risk for Preterm Birth

Sep. 16, 2024 — A new study has found that more than half of Black and Hispanic infants were born into very low-opportunity neighborhoods, and that babies born into these neighborhoods had a 16-percent greater risk ...

Scientists Develop Tool to Predict Sepsis in Apparently Healthy Newborns

Oct. 28, 2024 — A genetic signature in newborns can predict neonatal sepsis before symptoms even start to show, according to a new study. The study, led by University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University ...

Heart Failure, Atrial Fibrillation and Coronary Heart Disease Linked to Cognitive Impairment

Oct. 10, 2024 — A new American Heart Association scientific statement suggests addressing cardiovascular health earlier in life may reduce the risk of stroke and help preserve thinking and memory later in ...

Atypical Metabolite Levels at Birth May Increase SIDS Risk

Sep. 11, 2024 — Newborns who had an atypical pattern of metabolites were more than 14 times as likely to die of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), compared to infants who had more typical metabolic patterns, ...

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Enhances Brain Circuits to Relieve Depression

Sep. 6, 2024 — Scientists found that certain changes in neural activity predicted which patients would benefit from a type of cognitive behavioral ...

Natural Probiotic Discovered in Newborns Microbiomes

Sep. 6, 2024 — In the largest genomic analysis of UK infant microbiomes to date, researchers have uncovered a type of bacterium that helps digest breast milk and protects a baby's gut from ...

Differences in Oxygen Physiology in People With Down Syndrome

Aug. 15, 2024 — A groundbreaking new study reports important differences in oxygen physiology and red blood cell function in individuals with Down ...

Clinical Trial Shows JAK Inhibitor Improves Multiple Autoimmune Conditions in Patients With Down Syndrome

Aug. 13, 2024 — An unprecedented study reveals strategy to decrease the burden of alopecia areata, atopic dermatitis, psoriasis and other autoimmune ...

Breakthrough Study Reveals Molecular Subtypes of Down Syndrome, Offering Insights for Personalized Medicine Approaches

Aug. 7, 2024 — A new study identifies distinct molecular and immune subtypes across individuals with Down syndrome, offering new insights that could lead to personalized medicine approaches for the clinical ...

Skin-to-Skin 'Kangaroo Care' Found to Boost Neurodevelopment in Preemies

Aug. 7, 2024 — Babies born very early had stronger neurodevelopmental performance at 1 year if they received more skin-to-skin care as newborns, a study ...

Blood Test Can Help Predict Chronic Lung Disease in Preterm Babies

Aug. 7, 2024 — A blood test can help predict which preterm babies will go onto develop chronic lung disease, allowing for earlier diagnosis and more targeted treatments, according to a new ...

Preventing Brain Damage in Preterm Babies

July 24, 2024 — An interdisciplinary team of physicians and scientists show for the first time that a blood protein called fibrin blocks an essential biological process that drives brain development in early life. ...

How Much Oxygen Do Very Premature Babies Need After Birth?

June 24, 2024 — A study suggests giving oxygen at a concentration of 90 to 100 percent soon after birth could halve the risk of death for very premature babies that need help ...

Study Shows Role of Fathers in Seeding the Microbiota of Newborns and Confirms Benefits of Maternal Fecal Microbiota Transplants

June 12, 2024 — A mother's contribution to the makeup of a newborn baby's microbiota has been well documented. Now a new article shows the important contributions that fathers make to the composition of ...

Digital Babies Created to Improve Infant Healthcare

June 7, 2024 — Researchers have created digital babies to better understand infants' health in their critical first 180 days of life. The team created 360 advanced computer models that simulate the unique ...

Babies Use 'Helpless' Infant Period to Learn Powerful Foundation Models, Just Like ChatGPT

June 5, 2024 — Babies' brains are not as immature as previously thought, rather they are using the period of postnatal 'helplessness' to learn powerful foundation models similar to those underpinning ...

Brain Connectivity Patterns Differ in Infants at Familial Risk for Autism

May 22, 2024 — A study has found distinct brain connectivity patterns in six-week-old infants at risk for developing autism spectrum disorder ...

Health and Economic Benefits of Breastfeeding Quantified

May 22, 2024 — Breastmilk can promote equitable child health and save healthcare costs by reducing childhood illnesses and healthcare utilization in the early years, according to a new ...

New Tool May Help Prioritize High-Risk Infants for RSV Immunization

May 21, 2024 — On the heels of a shortage of nirsevimab for infant respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) prevention, a new tool may help identify newborns at highest risk for ...

AI Algorithms Can Determine How Well Newborns Nurse, Study Shows

Apr. 29, 2024 — A modified pacifier and AI algorithms to analyze the data it produces could determine if newborns are learning the proper mechanics of nursing, a recent study shows. Specifically, the researchers ...

New Tool Helps Identify Babies at High-Risk for RSV

Apr. 25, 2024 — A new tool to identify infants most at risk for severe respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) illness could aid pediatricians in prioritizing children under 1 to receive a preventive medication before RSV ...