Today I want to write about something that's been weighing on my mind for the majority of my pregnancy up until now. Although I don't believe that any of my readers are pregnant (hey, you never know!), I think that it is nice to be informed of what will come your way when you are. If you want to be surprised, then skip this post starttttinngggg now.
Inevitably there are going to be a lot of tests that come your way as soon as you start your OB appointments. Blood tests for everything under the sun, a glucose test in later weeks, and even things that are looked for on an ultrasound. What I have found to be the most controversial and scary of all of these is called a "Triple Screen" or "Quad Screen" depending where you have it done and what they are testing for.
This blood test is meant to tell you the probability that your child could end up with neural tube defects, Downs Syndrome, as well as other genetic problems.
Sounds like something you'd want to be aware of, right? Well...maybe not.
The way it works is all based on numbers. Let's say you're 25 years old. Off hand the average 25 year old has a 1 in 1,000 chance of having a baby with Downs Syndrome. (35 years old is 1 in 500 and 45 is 1 in 250) The way this test works your results indicate whether you have more or less of a chance based on that age scale. Most doctors will give you the option of additional testing if you come up with a result that is in the 1 in 200 range. (Still less than a 1% chance!)
I'm the kind of person that wants to know everything I can about what is going on with my body, probably to a fault, so when I first heard about this test and found out that it was optional I definitely planned on taking it. Then I did a little more research and talked to this nurse that I'm pretty close with...haha, hi mom. Turns out that with people in my age group chances of getting a "false positive" are almost just as likely, if not more, than getting correct information. Also- if you plan on having your child no matter what the prognosis, is it really worth the stress of getting worked up over potentially incorrect results? I'm clearly not an expert here, but I'm pretty sure that I'm not going to be "ready" to have a baby whether it turns out to be perfectly healthy or has other things for us to deal with, so why spend the next 5 months over analyzing?
Here's some additional info I found online:
http://pregnancy.about.com/cs/afp/a/afptesting.htm
The controversy in these tests lies in many places. One of which is the accuracy of the screenings. While some claim that they have only a 5% "false positive" rate, most research finds that there are 80+% rate of positive tests while the baby is unaffected. The false positive rates depend on many factors, including appropriate gestational age, maternal age, weight and the presence of diabetes.
False positives may not seem like a problem, however, there are follow up tests that are done that do carry risks, like amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling (CVS), which does carry a 1 - 2% rate of fetal loss. The standard is usually to repeat the AFP or triple screen. Another positive screen will then go to the Level II Ultrasound. Ultrasound can even be used to detect some of the anomalies associated with Downs Syndrome. If the ultrasound doesn't find a mix up in gestational age, or a multiple pregnancy, an amniocentesis is generally the next step.
Whether or not to have the test is a very hard decision and a very personal one. Some women feel that no matter what is wrong that they would not terminate the pregnancy, and therefore do not want the test. While others are very happy to have the normal results, even knowing that there are no guarantees.
Off my soap box now. :) I just figured that if I had put as much thought into it as I have, that it will likely affect most of you similarly. I'll hold off on anymore thought provoking posts for awhile, promise!
xo,
H
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