Life expectancy of persons with Down syndrome.

The longevity of people with Down syndrome being served by the California Department of Developmental Services was examined in terms of a number of variables known to be related to early mortality. The findings indicated that the predictors of survival for people with Down syndrome were not different from the variables related to mortality among people with mental retardation in general. A lack of mobility or feeding skills were better predictors of an early death than were medical problems associated with congenital heart disease. Life expectancy estimates of clients with Down syndrome who lacked mobility or eating skills were found to be poor as compared to individuals who had Down syndrome but did not have these problems regardless of the presence of heart disease.