My daughter has oligodontia. She is missing most of her permanent teeth. She has implants and bridges, so she is doing fine now. The question is, should she plan on having children? Or should she plan on adopting?
Is anybody familiar with this?
Thank you.
Thanks so much to everyone who offered advice and suggestions. Yes, I know that it will totally be my daughter's decision as to whether she has children. I would advise her, as her mom, to get genetic testing prior to getting pregnant so that she would have an idea as to what to expect. She knows what it was like to have this problem, so she would be the best one to decide. Thanks again. 😀
Well, if you had it to do over again, would you choose not to have her simply because of this condition?
That's her decision to make. Not that of strangers on the internet.
How old is she? I would say to get good genetics counseling when she is of an age when it matters. Ask your physician for a referral to a major medical center genetics counseling center - sometimes they are associated with cancer centers FYI but they work with people with non-cancerous issues. If she's young, so much can change in medical research between now and the time she is of childbearing years, I would try not to worry too much and would certainly not gather too much information right now. I know you want to have all the answers soon, because that's what parents do, but it would be unfortunate if you told her all along that she shouldn't have children if in fact that turns out not to be the case as research gives us new advances.
I would say that this is something she should discuss with a genetic counselor once she is old enough and in a position to want children.
I agree with others that she should discuss this with a genetic counselor when the time comes --and with her husband or significant other. Also bear in mind that she alone doesn't bring 100 percent of the genes to any child she has; the father will contribute too and that's why they need genetic counseling; is there a chance that dad's genes could mean a child might not inherit the condition? And does the condition have other, life-threatening aspects, or issues that would gravely affect quality of life? Perhaps you're worried as her mom because you saw a lot of difficulty and pain as she grew up with this, but remember that if she doesn't have kids yet, by the time she does, there may be many more and many earlier interventions to help a child with the condition.
As Diane B. notes below-- it would be a real pity if she didn't have kids, because she feared this condition, when in the end she could have had children if she wanted them. While your worry is understandable, if you are influencing her yourself, I would try to curb that -- this is truly between her, the father of any kids she might have, and the doctors.
I think she should discuss this with her doctor, only s/he knows her health history and how her condition would affect her reproductive capability and other possible problems or issues.
since genetics in one of several causes of it i would have her see a genetics counselor to see if it will definitely be passed on. and then let her decide from there if she wants to take the chance of her kid having it or not. (she knows what its like to have it and will make a decision based on what it was like to grow up having it, vs. people like me who had to look it up to know what it was)
not familiar with this condition, but man, with what medicine can do today, why not have kids if she chooses to do so?
Whether any woman (or couple) wants to have children is always a very personal decision. So much is unpredictable. The particular difference that your daughter has is not the issue.
The healthiest, most genetically perfect couple on the planet can have a child with severe special needs, that they never expected or knew about until the child was born. Then, if you've ever watched any of the shows on TLC, you will have seen stories of parents with dwarfism who gave birth to a child who will be 6 feet tall, or a mom who is blind from birth whose child has 20/20 vision, or a parent who has suffered a severe permanent injury who goes through great difficulties to have a child. There are stories of parents who had never heard of the genetic condition which affected their child at birth, and parents with whose entire family has the same disabling genetic condition but who are happy, loving and capable, just in a different way.
Of course, there are also families with a disability or difference, and the entire attitude is one of resentment, discouragement, anger, shame and denial. What makes one family so content, grateful, and confident, and the other family so bitter?
Google the story of Nick Vujicic. He's an Australian man who was born without any arms or legs, to parents who had no limb differences, his mom had a healthy pregnancy, and there is no family history of limb differences. He is now married to a woman who happens to be physically "normal" (she has all her arms and legs and fingers and toes) and they have two children, also who have the expected, typical number of arms and legs. His attitude is one of encouragement and he is a motivational speaker. His life is joyful, although he certainly is candid about the fact that having no limbs at all has challenges. But his life is much more than physical challenges.
Much depends on the person's attitude, and that of his or her family. Many people with differences tell about how their families treated them normally, respecting their limitations, but treating them just like the other kids in the family. Those people realize that its about more than looks or typical appearance. Its about personality, character, spirit, love, and heart. Then there are some people who appear physically normal and who are healthy and what the world calls beautiful, who don't ever want to have children because they fear having a less-than-gorgeous, other-than-genetically-perfect child, or they fear random illness or disease, or they fear having the post-birth saggy tummy and stretch marks and weight gain.
By the way, one of my daughter's diagnoses is a genetic condition called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, a connective tissue disorder and collagen deficiency, resulting in skin issues and muscle and joint pain and many other problems. We had never heard of it, no one in our families has it, and our son does not have it.
I hope you're encouraging your daughter's personal character development, sense of confidence, and loving heart and spirit. That will determine whether she wants to have children, not whether they'll have permanent teeth or not.
i don't know. there are so many more factors that go into a decision that heavy, right?
first and foremost, is it a hereditary condition?
has it made her miserable?
is it painful?
has it impeded her quality of life?
i don't really think that 'teeth' are the sole marker of being a great parent.
i can think of dozens of other factors that i myself would eye askance when considering reproduction.
what does your daughter say?
khairete
S.
This decision is definitely not one you would be making for her.
Reread and think about Mel R's post.
First of all, do you know if this is a genetically passed disease? Does anyone else in your family have this condition?
I agree with the others about checking with a genetic counselor. She can probably have a chromosomal test which is a fairly easy procedure (i.e. they usually just draw blood, but of course, I don't know if it would show up or not.
