Attitudes Toward Marriage and Childbearing of Individuals at Risk for Huntington's Disease.

Huntington's Disease (HD), a mid-life onset inherited neurological disorder, can have a profound social and psychological impact on affected individuals and relatives. This paper discusses the attitudes of 45 individuals at risk for inheriting HD toward marriage and childbearing. Social and demographic variables influencing these attitudes were also examined. Subjects who had graduated from college were found to be more likely to be deterred from having children than those with less education. Current childbearing status was also found to influence attitudes toward hypothetical situations dealing with having children. Knowledge of the factors influencing attitudes in these areas can aid health professionals involved in genetic counseling for Huntington's Disease and other inherited mid-life onset disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Social Work in Health Care is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)