Non-Invasive Prenatal Screening

What is noninvasive prenatal screening?

Noninvasive prenatal screening is a blood test to determine the chances that your baby will be born with genetic abnormalities. When you’re pregnant, your blood contains both your own DNA as well as DNA from your placenta. The doctors at TLC Perinatal PA typically offer noninvasive prenatal testing after your ninth week of pregnancy.

Noninvasive prenatal screening extracts the placental DNA and tests it for genetic abnormalities. It also reveals the blood type and sex of your baby, so make sure to let your Perinatologist know if you would prefer to wait until delivery to know the sex of your child.

Why would I need noninvasive prenatal screening?

Today, the team at TLC Perinatal PA offers noninvasive prenatal screening to all expecting mothers, although historically the test was provided to women with high-risk pregnancies due to advanced maternal age or other factors.

Noninvasive prenatal screening tests are most often used to identify chromosomal disorders such as trisomy 21 (Down syndrome), trisomy 18 (Edward syndrome), trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome), and extra or missing X and Y chromosomes which determine your baby’s sex.

Advances in noninvasive prenatal screening are increasing the scope of the test to include single-gene factors and variants such as Tay-Sachs disease or cystic fibrosis but technology is not there yet.

What happens during noninvasive prenatal screening?

Noninvasive prenatal screening is a simple blood draw from your arm. Your doctor then sends your blood sample to a diagnostic lab where it’s separated and tested for genetic irregularities. In most cases, the results are available within a couple of weeks.

What happens if my noninvasive prenatal screening shows abnormalities?

If your noninvasive prenatal screening results are abnormal, your MFM evaluates all early testing including your first-trimester ultrasound and nuchal translucency test. Your doctor will then discuss the genetic implications and order additional prenatal tests to gather more information about your baby’s genetic makeup, including an amniocentesis and a chorionic villus sampling (CVS). Ultimately, prenatal screenings help your MFM customize your prenatal care and educate you to help you and your baby thrive.

If you have a high-risk pregnancy or are interested in noninvasive prenatal screening, call TLC Perinatal PA or make an appointment online today.