ISLAMABAD: Recently statistics revealed that the number of children suffering from intellectual disabilities in Pakistan has increased due to marriages between cousins, within the same family.
A study conducted by the Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University has found that 30 new genes which are causing these disabilities.
In light of this recent discovery, recommendations will be sent to the government within a week for legislation which will require a screening test to be conducted before marriage in cousins.
The recommendations also include a proposal to ensure neonatal screening, which is already practiced in Europe and the US.
Neonatal screenings can identify conditions that could affect a foetus’ long term health or survival.
The vice chancellor of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), during a press conference on the report, said that 5 million people in Pakistan suffer from intellectual disabilities, a much higher ratio than in developed countries.
“We have come to know that genes have been changing in some families. Although these genes can become active in any child, the risk is 8 to 10 times higher in the case of marriages between first cousins,” he said.
He said there are around 800 genes known to be able to cause intellectual disabilities, if mutated.
The Federal Secretary for Science and Technology, Fazal Abbas Mekan, said the study is an indication that Pakistani universities are capable of conducting such researches, which will eventually prove beneficial for the country, since Pakistan has the highest number in statistics related to intellectual disabilities.
