How are genetic disorders passed to …

Genetic traits can be passed through families in several distinct patterns. The most common patterns are the following:

Dominant genetic diseases are caused by a mutation in one copy of a gene. If a parent has a dominant genetic disease, then each of that person’s children has a 50% chance of inheriting the disease.Examples of dominant genetic diseases include Achondroplasia and Huntington disease

Recessive genetic diseases. When both parents are carriers of the same recessive disease, there is a 25% chance that the pregnancy will inherit the trait from both parents and have the disease, a 50% chance that the pregnancy will inherit the trait from only one parent and be a carrier, or a 25% chance that the pregnancy will not inherit the trait from either parent and will not be a carrier or have the disease.

Chromosome abnormalities can occur in any pregnancy. Sometimes these risks are related to the parent’s age and involve extra or missing chromosomes.