Ancient Case of Down Syndrome Discovered in 1,500-Year-Old Skeleton

French researchers discovered a 1,500-year-old skeleton that may shed light on how ancient civilizations dealt with genetic disorders. The skeleton confirms the oldest case of Down syndrome in a child, according to findings published in the International Journal of Pathology.

Researchers noted the skeleton's broad skull and flattened base with thinner skull bones--all telltale signs of Down syndrome, according to ABC News. Down syndrome occurs when an individual has a full or partial extra copy of chromosome 21. This additional genetic material alters the course of development and causes the characteristics associated with Down syndrome. Today, it's estimated that about 3,000 to 5,000 children are born with this chromosome disorder and it is believed there are about 250,000 families in the United States of America who are affected by Down Syndrome, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).  

Though researchers had originally discovered the skeleton in 1989 during an excavation that also uncovered 93 other skeletons from a fifth- to sixth- century necropolis south of the Abbey of Saint-Jean-des Vignes in northeastern France, they could not confirm that the child had Down syndrome. Further analysis reaffirmed their suspicions much later.

Much like today, researchers said they believe that the genetic disorders did not influence the treatment of individuals born in ancient times. Archaeologists determined that as the child was buried like other skeletons that did not have the genetic disorder--face-up with its head pointing west and feet pointing east, hands situated on the pelvis--it was unlikely treated differently than anyone else, in life. 

"This Down syndrome child was not treated differently at death than others in the community," said lead author Maite Rivollat, via Fox News. "We interpret this as meaning that the child was maybe not stigmatized during life, the first time a Down syndrome individual has been so viewed in the context of the ancient community."