Testing..CVS & Amnio

If she would abort if there was a disability then the test is valuable to her- otherwise the tests carry unnecessary risks.

HI Mae,
First congrats! Sorry, i didn't get to post before...so delayed congrats on being grandma ;-)

Tests...I haven't had them, but know people who have, for a variety of reasons. some felt they wouldn't go ahead with the pregnancy if a baby was found to have down's syndrome, others would but wanted to be prepared.

I think the things to consider are...why is she having it done? What would she do if she was told her baby has down's syndrome or another condition (I hate all the words for these things!!!)? if she would continue the pregnancy, how would she feel about possible pressure from doctors not to? how does she feel about the risk of miscarriage in relation to the test?

also how pregnant is she? at 11 - 13? weeks they can also perform a nuchal scan and other tests such as measuring the bridge of the nose of a baby to determine the likelihood of down's syndrome (ie you are given a risk of 1:500 or 1:3000...). if that's a possibility, how does she feel about a figure rather than 99% certainty)?

my understanding is that they do one test or the other. CVS is earlier than the amnio, more invasive, and higher miscarriage rate, but some women prefer it as it is done earlier as they have more options at that point.

re friends who have had tests done...

one friend had an amnio, and once she was on the table they told her that there was a chance of her miscarrying during the test--ie they would see it happen on the ultrasound screen. That terrified her, but she was already there & went ahead--but wished she'd had that information before, so she could have prepared herself better. everything was fine, and she was reassured to know this.

another friend had an amnio, no problem, and again was reassured--she felt she would have gone ahead with a pregnancy no matter what, but wanted to know so she could be prepared.

another friend had CVS, after which she had bleeding on and off throughout the pregnancy--again, a risk she wasn't told about, which caused her a great deal of anxiety.

so, i do think it's so important to be fully educated, and think about what she would do / feel in any situation...as only then can we make the decisions that are right for us, knowing the risks and benefits.

Finally, I think it's soooo important to not be pressured by the doctors. there is so much pressure, and it's so rushed...leaving so little time to really think about what's best for each person and their families.

so hope that helps a bit...

Kiki

Hi Mae

Ditto to all the previous respondents.

After spending several hundred dollars on fuel and other car expenses, several days of my time and some of my money on gap fees over the top of medical specialist bills for scans and followup consultations, to satisfy my (new) family doctor that I was indeed well, I discovered that there were no problems in the first place that she and I didn't already know about.

I am, perhaps understandably, of the opinion that many tests are ordered by doctors to satisfy themselves that they will not be sued if the woman is not offered the test and there is a 'negative' outcome that is blamed on them.

I think your daughter has to weigh up for herself the consequences of both having, and not having, these tests. She needs to decide for herself how she would handle the worst case scenarios either way. Life is a gamble. We do not know with any certainty what will happen this afternoon or next year but we have the opportunity to assess the risks and opportunities before making decisions.

On the other hand it is a wonder that pregnancy and birth generally go as well as they do with all the needles and scans, each of which carries its own risks, that women have invade their bodies during pregnancy.

Cheers

Louise

who had amnio and was given positive for Downs Syndrome - turns out baby didn't have downs. Talk about mental torture for nothing!

I agree with alemama.

Its a very personal decision each woman must make for herself weighing risks of the procedure. Personally, I wouldn't risk miscarriage, and the other test is too inconclusive about anything, but may just cause anxiety which would necessitate an amnio to deal with the uncertainty.

Marie

my friend was pg at 36 (or was it 37?) and even though wouldn't have aborted in any case, she wanted to know if there was any problem before the birth.
after the amnio she had some sort of adverse effect (not sure what it was called or why it happened) but she had some on and off bleeding and was put on 'pelvic rest' for a few months. and had to go for weekly ultrasounds to make sure everything was ok. talk about stress.
her baby was fine, by the way.

personally, I've always avoided all the testing, aside from one ultrasound at around 6 months. if there's a situation that would require special delivery considerations (like an open spina bif), I'd want to know before attempting a homebirth. other than that, I wanted to just enjoy my pg's and abortion was never an option for me, so why go looking for trouble?

i was 40 when i was pregnant. i decided to have CVS. it was fine and the baby was fine. i live in nyc. odds are better if you are in a place where they do the procedure often. i felt relieved to know by 16 months i had a 99% chance my baby was fine. j

how've you been?
I agree, its always a good idea to check the statistics of the specific provider you will be using. but even then, you can never be sure which end you'll be on. my friend had her amnio done at a major NYC teaching hospital and still had problems.
like everything else, you do your research and soul searching, choose what works best for you and hope it all goes well.
I can imagine the relief knowing the baby is fine.