What is the life expectancy of someone with the disease?

Most men with klinefelter syndrome can live a normal and productive life. Early diagnosis, educational interventions, medical management, and strong social support will help the males live full and productive life.

What are the physical symptom of the disease?

As babies, many of the males have weak muscles and not much strength. The may sit up, crawl, and walk later than other babies. At about age 4, the males tend to be taller and have a lack of coordination. When they enter puberty, beacause they have a small amount of testosterone, they might have a taller, less muscular body, and less facial and body hair, and broader hips than other boys. As teens, the males may gave larger breasts, weaker bones, and a low energy level than other boys. At adulthood, they look like males without the condition, though a bit taller. Though they are more likely than other males to get certain health problems, such as autimmune disorders, breast cancer and etc. Also 95 to 99 percent of the males with klinefelters are sterile, which means they can't have children.

http://www.andrologyaustralia.org/images/pageContentImages/KlinefeltersIMG.jpg

How is the disease diagnosed?

Klinefelter syndrome is most often diagnosed during adulthood, using a karyotype, which the picture of the patient's chromosomes taken from his blood. It can also be diagnosed during the mother's pregnancy, with cells taken from the amniotic fluid that surrounds the fetus.

What are the chances of a person with this disease passing the disease to their offspring?

There is really not a chance for the parent to give klinefelter syndrome to their offspring. For one reason, klinefelter syndrome causes males to be sterile, which means that they cannot have babies.

How prevalent is the disease in the population?

The statistic for XXY is 1 in 500 to 1000 males. Though it is very rare for the males to have the symptoms of klinefelter syndrome.

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/disorders/whataregd/klinefelter/images/kleinfelter_person.jpg

If the disease is chromosomal abnormality, describe the abnormality.

The disorder is caused by nondisjunction. For example, is a pair of six chrormosomes fails to seperate during the creation of an egg (or sperm), this is known as nondisjunction. When that egg combines with a normal sperm to form an embryo, that embryo may end up with two Xs and one Y, making it XXY.

How does a person inherit this genetic disorder? Is it dominant or recessive? Is it genetic or chromosomal?

Usually with males, they inherit an X from their mothers and Y from their fathers. With kliensfelter syndrome, the males inherit an extra X making it XXY. Which is typically caused by nondisjunction, the failure of homologous chromosomes to seperate properly during meiosis.

It is recessive and a chromosomal disorder.

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/disorders/whataregd/klinefelter/images/kleinfelter_karyotype.jpg

What is a genetic counselor?

Job details-genetic counselors provide both information and support to families who have members with genetic disorders, and to families who may have the risk of inherited disorders. They identify families with the risk, investigate the problem in the family, find information about the disorder and analyze the inheritance patterns and give options to the family.

Qualifications-genetic counselors hold a master's degree from one of over 30 U.S. graduate programs. Certification is obtained through successful completion of documented clinical experience and the American Board of Genetic Counceling's examination.

http://www.uams.edu/chrp/genetics/gchomefamily32274457.jpg