Should doctors perform plastic surgery on infants with down syndrome?

Question

I have to write a paper on the pros and cons of this topic. Some of the pros I have are: might get rid of social stigma, might give the child more self-confidence, and it might help with their speech. The cons I have are: plastic surgery can be painful and dangerous, no guarantee the surgery will work, setting kids up for higher expectations (which could also be good), why change because society can't accept you?, and the high cost.

I was just wondering if anyone had any more creative views on this. The things that I thought of are not very original ideas at all. Can someone please help?

Answer 1

Gosh no as that is showing the child is not socially acceptable ..

Downs kids are lovely and the ones i know are full of confidence

By allowing plastic surgery on babies that is showing we do not accept them for who and what they are

Having a child with a disabilty myself i do not have high expectations as that is setting the child up for a fall

These kids are special and should be cherished . .society will always riducule the different .. that is human nature ..

We can not change society and we can not change the child just to fit into society

Answer 2

On Infants?????

If the surgery is to alleviate a condition that would cause health to be degraded ....such as cleft palate, or an anomaly that impairs breathing, than absolutely. But for cosmetic reasons, there is no benefit for a procedure to an infant. The body needs to mature and develop prior to reconstruction...otherwise the procedure will likely be repeated. The skeletal structure is not in place with infants, and it's pure cartilage.

Answer 3

Cons: It is the PARENT'S request for surgery, NOT the poor infant-he/she cannot voice her own opinion.  Surgery to correct the common facial features is a negative attitude on the parents who feel they may be cheated out of a normal child.  Perhaps the parents may feel shunned by society.  

Pros: In some Down's children, the nose can be too flattened which can lead to breathing problems.   Although I disagree 100% about surgery on a Down's child, the practice is done more frequently than the general public hears about.  Perhaps negative publicity about plastic surgery can lead to a positive public awareness of how beautiful a Down's child is WITHOUT surgery.