There are various unsophisticated methods that can act as an initial screening for down syndrome babies performed on pregnant women. Two of such methods are measurement of the foetus’ spinal cord and size of the skull and a simple blood test. Both methods are inconclusive until a further test known as amniotic fluid test is performed. You can read more about amniocentesis here on Wiki.
For pregnant women nearing or above the age of 35, their risk of carrying a down baby is said to be higher than for a younger woman. This has caused many women to seek some sort of tests in the initial stage of their pregnancy if they fall into this age group. An amniotic test cannot be performed too early on during the pregnancy and it does carry a slight risk of a miscarriage. Plus, it sounds like a scary procedure where a long needle is inserted into the stomach to extract amniotic fluid.
As a result, many women choose to perform a blood test and hope that the results come back favourable. However, it must be said here that some studies have shown that blood tests for down syndrome detection are highly inaccurate. Most women will be found to be of high risk of carrying a down baby, and the doctors would normally suggest an amnio test be performed to determine the true risk.
I do not have the source to quote but what I was told by a pregnant mother who read about the statistics of such tests is such:
Out of 90% of the blood test results that show that women are facing high risk of having down babies, only 5% of them are confirmed to be true by amniotic tests.
This shows that blood tests are highly inaccurate and if you were to go by this, be prepared to hear the negative, only to be found later in an amnio that you are totally clear.
So ladies, if you are putting yourself through a blood test as an initial test for this syndrome, don’t panic at the results. It is best to consult with your doctor whether you should even perform this blood test to begin with. I did not do this test and neither did my doctor think it necessary for me to do it.
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Hi ladies, I am mother to 7 , with my youngest daughter having down syndrome. You are very correct that the blood tests are inaccurate. Mine all came back normal, as did an ultra sound. I opted out of an amino because of the risk and the fact that I would not abort regardless of the results.
If any of you do get a positive result for DS- you will be under enormous pressure to abort and will also receive very outdated and negative information.
Do yourselves a huge favor and check out the positives of having a child with DS. I have yet to meet even ONE parent who regrets having their child! Me included! I wouldn’t trade the girl for anything in the world.
Also know that their is research out there that is going to improve the cognitive impairments of DS.
Hi Carol. Thanks for sharing your story and encouraging other mothers in your shoes. I agree with you, no mother ever regrets having their kids no matter how they turn out. You are a very brave mother.