Fetal Down Syndrome Screening Advised

So, if they discover your baby has this problem, what then? Will they tell you this so you can make a decision to terminate your pregnancy? Or is it just to be forewarned? Maybe it's just me, but it smacks of "Big Brother". Who's to say women won't use this as a reason to abort their children, just because they don't want to deal with having to raise a child with a problem.

Hi Slim_Shady, I have the same discussion topic posted early this morning. This testing for down syndrome recommended for all pregnant women in the first trimester is called chorionic villi biopsy or sampling. The procedure is not new, and has been used for at least 10 years, maybe closer to 15. There is one thing you state which makes absolutely NO SENCE, which is "Such key changes in the testing for the disorder come from the integration of blood and nuchal translucency tests that substantially increase the chances of a woman's risk level regarding Down syndrome." Down syndrome is a chromosomal disorder that is not hereditary, but a "mistake" in the genetic makeup of a person. There is nothing about tests that "substantially increase the chances of a woman's risk level regarding Down syndrome". Amniocentisis is the previous procedure used to test for and diagnose Down syndrome, and involves a large needle inserted into the amniotic sac containing the preborn baby and amniotic fluids, then removing the fluids to be tested for the baby's DNA. The "new" test does not involve puncturing the maternal body, but instead, cuts away pieces of the placenta, the chorionic villi. Risks of infection, miscarriage, and more,are associated with this "new" test.

I don't get the purpose. It sounds like this group is perhaps a little abortion happy. I mean if they find out the baby has Down Syndrome there is nothing they can do. The old mom knew the risks and decided to get pregnant anyway, so what's the point? You will find out soon enough IMHO.

It is a good idea. Many women of younger ages have down syndrome babies. My daughter has one and she was only 19 when she had him. The pregnancy was diagnosed in all the usual tests as a normal fetus. Nobody knew until he was born. We love him as he is my 1st grandchild. He is a little bit slower at doing things but to me he is a normal happy child. His smile is worth a thousand words.

I AM ABOUT ALMOST 3 MONTHS PREGNANT AND I TOOK SOME TESTS I'M NOT SURE IF I TOOK ONE FOR DOWN SYNDROME, BUT I DO KNOW THEY TOOK OUT A LOT OF BLOOD AND TESTED FOR NUMEROUS THINGS TO MAKE SURE THE BABY WOULD BE OK. THE TEST CAME BACK WITH GOOD RESULTS SO MY BABY SHOULD BE FINE.

any pregnant women has a high risk of having a down syndorme child.All we have to do is to be carefull of what are we taking in our body, so proper supplementation is needed.

I was offered some sort of blood test and I was only twenty when I was carrying my son, but opted not to have it since I didn't want to make decisions about terminating a pregnancy based on a test result. Thankfully my child is healthy. I think each women should decide individually what is best for her and her unborn child.

Many countries are doing already the triple test by pregnancy woman. It dont say that your baby has a down syndrom, but the percentage of the change to get an child with a child syndown. If it is very low, why should you do that.

I got the test with all the babies. Not to have an abortion but if the child is sick. It will have the very best care when born as soon as its born not having to wait for tests. I think that is a good idea.

This is fearful matter, there is what method to be prevented?

I think it's a personal decision whether or not to have this test. What if the results are positive? The plus side of this is that you will have time to educate yourself before the baby arrives on the condition and how to care for the child. My daughter was offered a screening for cystic fibrosis during her pregnancy and she refused the test. The doctor was quite upset and rude with her. However her reasoning was that there was no family history, there was nothing that could be done to change it, and she would not abort even if the test was positive. Needless to say, she changed doctors.

They offered me this test with my last son told me that my levels showed high risk and that i should report to the office immediately. I denied the test and my baby turned out healthy and if he didnt he would still be a blessing to me all things are in Allah's (God) hand.

when i was preagnent i went to the doctors and they asked me if i wanted to take this test. i asked what is it about (i found it strange they would ask i thought something was wrong) so they said its a test that may or may not determine if the baby has down syndrome. So you know i got scared ...thinking she wouldnt have asked me this if it wasnt signs leading up to this test. so the doc tells me " no there werent any signes its a new test and we (as doctors) are suppose to ask if you want to take it. then she broke down that if you take the test and it comes back positive you have the option at a early stage of preagnency to abort the baby. and if it comes back negitive then no problem. so i said no i didnt want to take it. if the baby came out with a problem, i would have to deal with that. I think its a shame ... this test is saying that people with down syndrome dont fit into the "NORM" of society and they offer you the option of getting rid of a "Problem" early on. Good post take care.

I am assuming that the test you are talking of here is the Triple screen or AFP testing where they draw blood and send it off to get a result. I just wanted to let you know that even with this test their are false positives and you could get the result that you have an elevated risk of having a child with Down Syndrome and actually be caring a healthy baby. I did do this test and I am only 24yrs old. My results came back with an elevated risk of my child having Down Syndrome after doing a high level ultrasound it came back that my child is very unlikely to have Down syndrome. So in my opinion unless you are set on the fact that if you have a child with a disorder you are going to abort then the test is a fairly big waste of time and causes much undue stress. Even my physician informed me that their are a high number of false positives with this test. Why they preform this test in unknown to me.