The end of amniocentesis?

by Bethany Sanders (Subscribe to Bethany Sanders's posts) Oct 19th 2008 10:00AM

Categories: Pregnancy & Birth, Special Needs

Amniocentesis is not only uncomfortable, it can put an unborn baby at risk. Still, the test is often the only way that parents can find out if their baby if there baby has a chromosomal disorder, such as Down's syndrome. Though the risk is small, any risk is important when you're talking about the health of your child.

But there may come a time when amniocentesis is used less frequently, if at all. A new method developed by scientists at Stanford University may make detecting genetic problems as easy as a blood test. By counting and sequencing DNA fragments, researchers were able accurately detect which women were carrying babies with genetic abnormalities. Because fetal DNA circulates in the mother's blood early in pregnancy, the test would also be able to be done earlier than amniocentesis.

If the test holds up in larger trials, experts estimate it could be used by doctors within two to three years.

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

hudsonsmommy 10-20-2008 @ 2:47PM

We had something like this done during my pregnancy with our no 8 month old son. The doctor told us it was new and we could try it if we wanted. We did, the test came back negative for any possible defects, and our son was born perfect. It was a huge load off our shoulders, instead of having an invasive, possibly dangerous, amnio, we had this instead and it was easy and reassuring.

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