With very little background, if any, available on our internationally adopted children, the idea that they may very well have bio sibs in the birth country, the orphanage or adopted by other families, perhaps in your country of residence, is one that arises naturally.

Amazingly, sibling relationships are established more often than some would think possible. A bit of remembered history, something in the child's documentation, a chance encounter with an information exchange that raises questions ... any can pose questions that want answers.

Sometimes it's a resemblance that brings about the process that can end up proving blood ties. There are many cases of siblings being discovered through web group photo sharing, where an adoptive family posts pictures of their darling child that rivet another with such striking similarities to their own that further examination of details leads to genetic testing, bridge-building between families and a life-long link being forged.

In one almost-too-astonishing-to-believe connection, two families discovered their China-born daughters are identical twins, both now living in the US, and both having been given the same name.

Many adoptive parents are anxious to connect their child with the roots and genetic connections, but there are some considerations to be undertaken in advance of getting down to the nitty-gritty of establishing relationships.

First, genetic testing is not cheap, nor is the information 100% reliable. There are a number of labs doing the tests in the USA, and not all use the same parameters. Learning the details of DNA testing is an intense education process for anyone not a geneticist, and there is some disagreement as to the accuracy of results, or the interpretation.

Secondly, there's a concern that including a bio sib who may live thousands of miles away and under very different circumstances and attitudes may complicate a child's world. If there are siblings in the home, a distant sister or brother could raise emotional issues for all the children. If more than one family member is adopted, how will a bio sib connection for one child reflect on one without?

With results inconclusive in many cases, some feel that going through the expense and stress of DNA testing would be opening a can of worms better left closed. Others would be happy with any information, definite or not, and enter the process with hope of gaining whatever insight may prove available about their child's potential relationships.

To be continued ...