Down Syndrome: Health Issues - Down Syndrome and Medical Issues

Down Syndrome: Health Issues
by Len Leshin, M.D., F.A.A.P.

Author's note: I'm a pediatrician and the father of Avi, 15 years old, and Nathan, 17 years old. (Photos!) Avi has Down Syndrome ("DS" for short) and has inspired me to write these essays about children with DS for other parents. I have put them here for general reading. You may E-mail me with any questions about these essays. I have also included some other pediatric items of interest for parents.

H. Len Leshin, M.D. is board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Besides offering general pediatric care, Dr. Leshin has a special interest in caring for children with Down syndrome. He is a member of the Down Syndrome Medical Interest Group, a worldwide group of doctors and other professionals dedicated to the care of people with Down syndrome. He wrote a chapter on pediatric health care in Down syndrome in the book Down Syndrome: Visions for the 21st Century (Wiley-Liss, 2002). He also wrote a chapter on medical concerns in the latest edition (third) of the book Babies with Down Syndrome: A New Parents' Guide (Woodbine House, 2008). He is a member of the Clinical Advisory Board of the National Down Syndrome Society.
Dr. Leshin grew up in Robstown, Texas and attended St. Stephen's School in Austin, Texas. He did his undergraduate training at the University of Texas at Austin and attended the University of Texas Medical School at Houston. He completed internship and residency training in pediatrics at the Oklahoma Children's Memorial Hospital in Oklahoma City. He has been in private pediatric practice in Corpus Christi, Texas for twenty years. He and his wife Bobbie have two sons: Nathan, 17 years old, and Avi, 15 years old. Avi has Down syndrome and epilepsy.
Dr. Leshin currently belongs to the Texas Medical Association, Nueces County Medical Society, and Texas Pediatric Society.

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