Medical Genetic Info Online

DOCTOR'S VIEW ARCHIVE

SAN CLEMENTE, CA--Medical genetics is one of the faster moving fields in medicine. More and more inherited diseases are being recognized. And more and more is being learned about the established genetic disorders. The classic (and highly technical) reference catalog of human genes and genetic disorders, Mendelian Inheritance in Man, by Victor A. McKusick is in its 12th edition. It comes in 3 volumes containing a total of 3,792 pages and has more than 9,000 entries. On a clinical level, there are now tests available for over 450 different genetic diseases.

Given this huge mound of information, how can you find something about medical genetics on the Internet that is intelligible, generally sound, and useful? Below, are listed several sites we believe may be of potential value to you. This list is based upon a larger list provided by Drs. Robert Sikorski and Richard Peters in an excellent article entitled "Internet Resources for Medical Genetics" which appeared on October 15, 1997 in the Journal of the American Medical Association (volume 278, pages 1212-1213). Our recommended array is as follows:

Genetic Conditions and Rare Conditions Information

http://www.kumc.edu/gec/support/groups.html

This site points to the addresses of groups and foundations doing research for specific genetic conditions and provides some links to educational resources.

March of Dimes Genetics Site

http://www.modimes.org/pub/genetics.htm

The March of Dimes has information at this site for patients about both common and rare genetic diseases, including achondroplasia, Down syndrome, and thalassemia Mediterranean anemia). There is also an excellent prenatal care brochure called "Having a Healthy Baby".

US Department of Energy-Human Genome Information

http://www.ornl.gov/TechResources/Human_Genome/publicat/publicatio ns.html

The Department of Energy, a sponsor of the Human Genome Project, provides basic information at this site about human genetics.