Pros And Cons Of Genetic Counseling

Family nursing requires knowledge in many different areas of study. One of these functions requires the family nurse to have a basic knowledge relating to genetic disorders in order to provide essential information, to patients and their families, regarding risks and complexities that could arise to couples when starting a family. In this discussion board post, I will discuss a scenario for a couple inquiring about the possibilities of a genetic disorder if they choose to have children. I will discuss the different services that patients can be provided during genetic counseling and how I would assess their family history for potential genetic problems in their children. I will also discuss recommendations for testing and why there are advantages and disadvantages to genetic testing. Furthermore, I will also discuss how I would personally
Huntington’s Disease is autosomal dominant, which means that if one parent carries the gene, then each child they may decide to have has a 50% chance of also inheriting the gene (Andersson, Juth, Petersen, Graff, & Edberg, 2012). However, since both parents have the gene, the chances of a children inheriting this gene also increases to 75%. Everyone has two genes. If they have Huntington’s disease, the person will have one good gene and one bad gene, which will be the mutant gene with the disease. If both parents have the disease, they will each have a bad gene that could pass along. It only takes one bad gene for the disease to pass along to the next generation. With these disease, the carrier of the gene will always develop the disease. However, one thing to consider with this gene is that it is a disease that usually presents itself between the age of 30-50 years old (Andersson et al., 2012). If a parent with this disease happen to pass away prior to being diagnosed, it is possible that the gene has been passed on without