Are physical disabilities hereditary? Can they be passed down to my children?

Question

I have a physically noticeable disability, which I've had since birth. Although it is noticeable, if I wear sunglasses I can easily cover it up. My left eye is completely blind, shut at all times and my eyebrows are a bit raised. To those with no prior knowledge, it could seem as if I'd been in a fight or a mild car accident. Nothing else on my body is affected.

I now find myself an expecting father and I am concerned about passing this disability on. Where can I find a source which deals with physical, as in affecting one's structural appearance, disabilities/defects. Most sites that I have found deal with hereditary issues such as diseases.

Answer 1

Although the internet is a wonderful place to gather information, there is risk in self-diagnosis. This is especially true in situations where hereditary issues are of concern. For example, some forms of muscular dystrophy are x-linked, while others are recessive. This difference has tremendous impact on prediction of what will occur in future generations. Conversely, not all birth defects are hereditary, some are just plain congenital anomalies.

While pediatricians and OB/Gyns are good with the common hereditary disorders, most are unfamiliar with the rarer ones. My suggestion would be to consult an MD who is a boarded clinical geneticist.

Answer 2

Hey firstly congratulations on the baby =]
secondly my boyfriend has a very mild case of muscular distrophy and its a possibility that if we had a child that they would inherit it, though you also have to factor the mothers genes there would be a higher chance of it passing on to our children if i also had the gene.
the best place to look would either be the NHS site or Wikipedia.
xox
good luck with the baby.

Answer 3

Ask the OB/GYN doctor, there may be a test they can do to see if it was past to the child.