ACS Adults with Down syndrome who use US developmental disabilities service systems

2011

Aim: Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) use developmental disabilities service systems but it is rare to have a large enough dataset to be able to describe the functional, health, and service-use situation for adults with DS across the lifespan. Method: Data came from the US National Core Indicators (NCI) survey. There were almost 1 200 adult service users with DS in 26 US states, representing around 10% of all service users. Results: Compared to other service users, adults with DS were younger and less likely to have a physical disability, but more likely to have a hearing impairment, be overweight (especially women), and develop Alzheimer's dementia. In young adulthood (18-29 years) through to middle age (40-49 years), a significantly higher proportion of individuals with DS lived with family and used facility-based vocational services. Conclusion: A particular pattern of abilities, health conditions and service use was evident among adults with DS across the lifespan.

Peer-reviewed publications in scholarly journals Published/In Press

Consumers/Families, Professionals, Students

http://ordering.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/subs.asp?ref=1468-3148&doi=10.1111/(ISSN)1468-3148

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