PEDIATRICS Vol. 85 No. 1 January 1990, pp. 79-84
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Van Dyke, D. C.
Right arrow Articles by Chang, H.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Van Dyke, D. C.
Right arrow Articles by Chang, H.

Cell Therapy in Children With Down Syndrome: A Retrospective Study

Don C. Van Dyke MD1, David J. Lang MD1, Susan van Duyne EdD1, Frances Heide RN, MS1, and Hyejung Chang MS1

1 From the Department of Pediatrics, the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, and the Biostatistical Consulting Center, the University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa; the Children's Hospital of Orange County, Orange, California; and San Gabriel/Pomona Regional Center, West Covina, California

Cell therapy, the administration of freezedried or lyophilized cells derived from fetal tissue of animals, has been suggested and accepted by some parents as a treatment for Down syndrome. Such therapy regimens have been purported to ameliorate dysmorphic features and to result in improvement in IQ, motor skills, social behavior, height, language, and memory. Interest in this therapy continues despite a lack of empirical support for its use and its illegality in the United States. In this study, 190 subjects of whom 21 had received cell therapy (from sources external to this study) were studied for 18 variables in the areas of growth, motor development, cognitive development, and adaptive/social status. Comparing the cell-treated group with a control group matched for sex, age, socioeconomic status, and cardiac history showed no statistically significant differences for any of the developmental or growth variables measured. These findings fail to support continued claims of improved functioning following cell therapy in persons with Down syndrome.

Key Words: cell therapy • Down syndrome

Submitted on January 10, 1989
Accepted on March 8, 1989




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 CLIN PEDIATRHome page
W. C. Cooley and J. M. Graham JR
Common Syndromes and Management Issues for Primary Care Physicians: Down Syndrome An Update and Review for the Primary Pediatrician
Clinical Pediatrics, April 1, 1991; 30(4): 233 - 253.
[PDF]