New Program Provides Comprehensive Care for Patients with Down Syndrome

Children with Down syndrome face many medical challenges. These can include heart defects, digestive diseases, as well as skin, hormone and vision problems.

To help meet these children's wide range of needs, CHOC Children's recently launched the CHOC Children's Down Syndrome Program An Alliance with the Down Syndrome Association of Orange County.

Coordinated Medical Care

The new program, which focuses on diagnosing and treating the complex medical aspects of Down syndrome, is based on our long-standing experience in treating patients with this genetic condition, says Ira T. Lott, M.D., medical director of Neurology and division chief of Pediatric Subspecialty Faculty (PSF), Neurology, at CHOC Children's. He is also a professor of pediatrics and neurology at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine.  "Through our clinic, we can provide these children with comprehensive, coordinated specialty care."

The medical complications of Down syndrome can be mild to severe, affecting each patient differently.

"The purpose of the clinic is to provide a thorough evaluation, assess each child's particular medical issues, and coordinate the best possible care for children with Down syndrome, " Dr. Lott says.  "Our goal is to make sure that children have access to a range of specialists, and we can help families arrange appointments with other doctors as needed." The program will be led by Anne Tournay, M.B.B.S., a pediatric neurologist and associate clinical professor in the Department of Pediatrics at UC Irvine School of Medicine. Dr. Tournay is a member of CHOC PSF and an expert in treating children with Down syndrome.

Meeting the Community's Need The organizations that support the program began working on it in the summer of 2008 to help fill an unmet need for coordinated medical care in this high-risk population. "Until now, there hasn't been a medical program in or around Orange County that focused entirely on the serious medical conditions in children with Down syndrome," says Lanny Hardy, executive director of the Down Syndrome Association of Orange County.

"We believe that this new pediatric program at CHOC will be a big step forward in helping children with Down syndrome meet their full potential in school and in the community,"  he says.

Bringing It All Together The clinic will be open Wednesday mornings at the CHOC Children's Neurology Center at 1120 W. La Veta, Suite 125, located across the street from the main hospital building.

For more information, please contact Program Coordinator Eric Doran at 714-512-3609 or downsyndrome@CHOC.org.

To schedule an appointment, please call the CHOC Children's Patient Access Center at 714-532-7986.