I'm so on the fence about this and need to decide quick. I'm 33 and will be 34 the end of Aug. My midwife said not to if I would not change anything and the chance of a false positive are high and that would cause undo stress but I also recall reading that the chance of a false positive on the triple screen later are greater then the early blood test. If that's the case then I feel like maybe I should just go ahead and do it and skip the later one. Another thought I had was to have the u/s and if anything looked not right then to do the blood otherwise just skip the blood part since I know it's that part that could throw everything off and maybe get the triple screen later, I'm not sure if they'd let me just do the u/s at this point and put off the blood till later..
I know they look for downs and I'm not to concerned with that since nothing would change but they also look for the risk of other major things, correct? Oh I hate making decisions like this, it was so much easier when they didn't even offer it with my DS!!
A highly personal choice. I am considerably older than you - 41.7. So, for myself and my DH, it was an easy choice. We went with all the testing that we could, except for CVS. We did the NT scan/triple screen and amnio. We are so blessed that we are carrying a healthy little girl - we are 27 weeks along. Though we know that genetically she is healthy, it does not rule out developmental issues, but we are hopeful that she is fine and dandy and my sugar/caffeine addictions (though I've cut back!) are not hurting the poor little thing.
I think the question for you to consider, which I am sure that you have already, is what you would do with the information. You indicated that you would continue with the pregnancy if, on the small chance, something were awry. If that knowledge were to give you the opportunity to be prepared for a child with special needs, then that might be a reason to go ahead with the NT scan.
Yes, there are false positives, but this is a non-invasive test. A prick of the finger for blood (not even taking it from the arm, just a prick on the finger) and an abdomninal ultrasound. Age really changes the odds, and at 33, it will favor you, versus me at 41.
Always a tough choice, but the question for you is what you would do with the knowledge. I wish you luck with the decision. It really is a soul searching issue.
Seriously. It is an entirely easy test and it identifies accurately 85% of the time. I have never heard of false positives with the combined test, though I am sure they happen. I DO know the AFP (later on) has lots of false positives. The test is completely non-invasive and if there is an issue (which there won't be) you can educate yourself as to how best to help your baby. I am AMA and am getting the test done though we will keep the baby no matter what to.
Really, just do it. It is also a neat chance to see how the baby is developing as it REALLY looks like a baby at that point!
Check Chick, One Tube and Ovary, FSH 15.9
Me: 36, DH: 36
DD: Selah was born 5/25/07 via c-section. 8 pounds 8 ounces, 21 3/4 inches long!
you get alot of good information and is a fun time to see the baby developing. I was thinking the same as you about not having any tests due to the high false positives...even on the triple screen. Part of that is because they give you a chance not a yes or no. So mine came back abnormal for Trisomy 13 and 18 due to the blood work but still only 1% chance but normal is 1/2%. That gave me good information that I used to decide if I was going to do an amnio (i did one on monday and am waiting for the results). Although I also would not terminate a pregnancy I really needed to know that my baby is okay. I am much older than you (41).
But it is a very personal decision. Good luck; I know it is really a hard choice sometimes. at least it was for me.
I have personally know 5 women that went through the tests & were told their baby had downs. When they gave birth, it was to a very healthy child, w/out downs. BUT, this is a personal choice that you & DH need to discuss. We chose not to have the tests ran beause we wouldn't terminate & I thought it would be too stressful to go through with it. But that was our decision. Good luck & whatever you decide it will be right for you!
As you know and have heard all this testing is a very personal choice. With my 3rd high fsh baby, who is now 5 months old, I opted to do CVS even though I was only 31 years old. I did the NT and quad screen when pregnant with my second child, my son, and I got the lowest possible risk on all fronts. Well, when he was 10 months old, after many months of stress, frustration, and worry, I finally convinced a doctor to do chromosome testing on my son, and we learned he does indeed have a chromosome abnormality. So, for me the NT was just too limited and unreliable in what it screened for. Also, more recently, a close friend's sister gave birth to a Downs baby. She was shocked b/c she had done the NT screening and blood work and her risk #s were quite favorable. I imagine this type of incident is rare, though. My SIL had the opposite experience during the NT screening...The doc and technician told her that there was a huge fluid filled sac at the base of the baby's brain and that here baby would likely die in utero. Well, 3 weeks later there was no such thing to be found, and her daughter is as healthy as can be. But, you can only imagine the stress those 3 weeks brought her and her husband. Anyway, my limited personal experience with the test showed me that it was unreliable.
I had one pregnancy that had a false positive on the AFP (greater than 1 in 10) and that pregnancy produced a perfect baby and one that showed no signs of problems until the amnio came back with a chromosomal error. The nuechal is a "screener" it does not tell you anything but a probability - i.e. 1:100 chance of trisomy 18 or 21 or whatever. It is ultimately a personal choice how much information you want when, but the NT is non-invasive and can't hurt the baby. I tried to think about if I would go nuts the rest of the pregnancy not knowing. You can also find out your blood results separately from the scan results (I do this since my blood results tend towards high risk).
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I was told the following by the Dr. that did all my testing on various pregnancies:
The NT catches the chromosomal issues that it screens for 85% of the time - meaning it misses it 15% of the time. I've also heard that combined with the blood work it goes up to 90%.
A normal level 2 scan then reduces your odds by another 35%
A normal level 2 scan or NT doesn't guarantee are no problems (as shown by above points) but an abnormal NT oe lwvwl 2 scan usually means there is a problem.
Not sure if that helps...but I've had complications on both pregnancies so wanted to share.
