[Genetics and society]

The incidence of genetic abnormalities in our population is rather high. About one out of 13 liveborn children will sooner or later suffer from a fully or partially genetically determined malformation or disease. With the use of numerical models ist has been attempted to predict the dysgenic effects of modern medicine and medical genetics in the next few generations of the Swiss population. Modern medical treatment will result foremost in an increase of multifactorial diseases and malformations. However, the impact on society will probably be smaller than the actual burden of chronic genetic diseases. In many families prenatal diagnosis will be the only way to obtain healthy children. On the other hand, substantial reduction of abnormal offspring can only be achieved by a prospective mass screening, a procedure which at the present time is neither feasible nor acceptable.