Mario Wezel 2014 Commended

One in eight hundred

After the implementation of prenatal screenings across Denmark in 2004, the number of babies born with Down’s syndrome fell dramatically. While around 60 children were born with the chromosomal disorder each year between 2000 and 2004, only 31 were born with the condition in 2006. More than 90% of all Danish parents decide to have an abortion if they find out that they are about to have a baby with trisomy 21.

Emmy is five years old and has Down’s syndrome. She lives in the countryside near Aarhus with her parents, Martin and Karina, and her younger brother, Kristian. For one year, she has attended the local kindergarten and will start school very soon.