Blood Test for Down Syndrome

I guess this is good, but I would more concerned about false-positive results. What if someone aborted a baby based on this test and the baby did not have Down Syndrome. I know two people who were told their children had Down Syndrome and they did not. I did not test for Down Syndrome with my last child. If it had been true, I wasn't ready to deal with it in the first trimester. Do you typically take the Down Syndrome test when you are pregnant? Why or why not?

FROM NBC: An experimental blood test could help screen for down syndrome -- without invasive and risky procedures. Doctors currently assess the risk for down syndrome and other genetic problems in a fetus with amniocentesis and chronic villus sampling, or CVS.

Only high-risk women undergo such procedures because they carry a slight risk for miscarriage.
The new blood test studied at the Chinese University of Hong Kong in China analyzes genetic material from both the mom and baby that's found in the mother's blood.

Doctors say the test did not give any false-negative results. Much more study is needed before it's available for clinical use.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Blood Test to Save Babies

A NEW BLOOD TEST THAT COULD SAVE THE LIVES OF HUNDREDS OF UNBORN BABIES IS BEING DEVELOPED BY BRITISH RESEARCHERS.

THE TEST WOULD BE USED TO IDENTIFY BABIES CONSIDERED TO BE AT RISK OF DEVELOPING CONDITIONS LIKE DOWNS SYNDROME AND CYSTIC FIBROSIS - REMOVING THE NEED FOR INVASIVE PROCEDURES LIKE AMNIOCENTESIS, WHICH CAUSES SOME WOMEN TO MISCARRY.

Testing for Down Syndrome in the womb can offer a mother reassurance - or if detected, a possibly difficult decision about whether to continue with the pregnancy. An 'amnio' test is usually offered at between 16 and 20 weeks, and it can take 2 weeks to get the result. Now researchers at University College Hospital London are assessing a new blood test, which, if it proves to be as accurate as the amnio test, could remove the risk of triggering a miscarriage.

Prof. Lynn Chitty/Institute of Child Health: "The new test is based on the fact that we now know that the baby's DNA, the baby's genes, circulate in the mother's blood. And therefore if we can analyze the baby's mother's blood and extract the baby's DNA an analyze that then we can get information about the baby's genetic makeup by taking a blood sample from the mother rather than by taking an invasive test. Large-scale trials have just begun of the new blood test, to assess whether the results are as accurate as with the standard amnio test.

Luckily, I haven't had to have an amnio test. I do think most women would much rather have simple blood draw than the test. There are risks associated with it and miscarriage seems to be the big one. Has anyone had an amniocentesis?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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