Testing, testing! « Back to Group Discussions

[porcelina]

Hey everyone!

We have had 2 healthy pregnancies, but as I am getting older (and as DH is a chronic worrier), DH is worried that we might not be as lucky this time around.

What are all you ladies doing about testing?

This from a midwife friend of mine: Just to review the options: CVS - Chorionic Villus Sampling (10-12wks), Nuchal Translucency (11-13wks), and Amniocentisis (14-16wks).  CVS and Amnio carry a risk of miscarriage, they are invasive procedures but they give concrete genetic information.  Nuchal Translucency is an ultrasound scan to look at the thickness of the neck fold (correlated with down's).  AFP is the blood test done at 15 weeks and tells you your relative risk of having a baby with down's or a few other congenital anomalies.  I don't like the AFP at all because even if you get a "positive" result it doesn't mean that your baby has any defect, it just means that your risk is high.  Similarly you can have a negative AFP and have a baby with issues. If you see a physician at any time, be prepared to be talked to in a way that would scare any reasonable well intentioned parent.

So, I have declined all testing in the past, since the AFP really just gives no information and just makes people worry more, and the CVS and Amnio have the risk of miscarriage. I guess that leaves the NT, but the NT doesn't seem to give all that much information either. Just curious what all you ladies are doing and why!

Edited by porcelina - 9/2/12 at 10:23am

[SweetMama34]

To my knowledge, the NT and AFP are used in conjunction with one another - there is a formula that combines the NT measurements, AFP blood test results and mother's age that determines relative risk. If your risk is super high, you may then choose a more accurate form of genetic testing to solidify your results.

[porcelina]

Yes, good point, I had forgotten about that!
 

[lenny1027]

I declined all testing last time except the ultrasound around 22 weeks. Plan to this time as well. I just thought it would scare me more than anything and if we got "bad news" I wouldn't do anything with that information except worry for months. Blissfully ignorant I guess.

[TwilightJoy]

We're doing ultrasounds, but no other tests.

Well, I'm tempted to waste money on this "test":
www.intelligender.com/

[kikaaaso]

I will have the ultrasounds done..but nothing else. With my first pregnancy (I was 21 yrs at the time), I took the triple screen test (Quad test now)...and it came up positive for possible risk of spina bifida. Well let me tell you, that was sooo stressful. I ended up having a ultrasound soon after that and everything was fine..and she is completely healthy. The stress was horrible though, and I promised never to do that to myself again. So..I haven't :) Now, I am 41 yrs old, and I still plan on only ultrasound. :)

[Lynann]

No testing for us. Even the 1 u/s will only happen if the CNM insists on it because of the previous c/s (like last time.) If she is happy with us already having a successful HBAC then we'll skip everything except the regular urine dip strips and BP checks, and maybe having the Ha1C instead of the GTT. I also plan on waiting until she can use the fetoscope for baby heart beat checks so that we can skip the doppler until labor.

I find tests, especially the ones that are NOT conclusive just cause more stress and worry than they do useful information.

[merialiss]

Because I'm 40 and have seen up close some of the chromosomal square dancing that can happen (usually with younger moms in my direct experience, go figure!) I thought that I'd go for CVS or amnio this time even though I didn't do anything but ultrasound with the other two. But now that I've read about the risks of ultrasound? Forget it. I'll do the AFP and NT this time though, and then opt for more invasive testing if those are scary, I think....well, maybe. I'd like the family to get used to any surprises asap but then again....the worrying! I'll follow my gut in the moment, never mind 

[porcelina]

Originally Posted by TwilightJoy 

Well, I'm tempted to waste money on this "test":
www.intelligender.com/

If you really want to do that for fun, buy yourself some pH strips and test it yourself! 4-6 girl, 7-9 boy.

Check this out:

http://www.in-gender.com/cs/forums/t/108013.aspx

[nstewart]

Originally Posted by SweetMama34 

To my knowledge, the NT and AFP are used in conjunction with one another - there is a formula that combines the NT measurements, AFP blood test results and mother's age that determines relative risk. If your risk is super high, you may then choose a more accurate form of genetic testing to solidify your results.

This is what we had done last time, and what I plan on having done for tests again.  With DS, we had 2 ultrasounds - the NT one at between 12 and 14 weeks (along with the AFP blood test), and the anatomy scan at between 18-20 weeks.  If there are potential issues based on the NT/AFP, then we'll decide what further steps/tests to take at that time, if any.

Otherwise, just the usual blood tests to screen mama for gestational diabetes, low iron, etc. 

I think it depends on your personality.  I am the kind of person that prefers more information rather than less.  If there is an issue/potential issue I want to know so that I can make informed decisions about how to proceed and be mentally prepared for the outcomes.  For example, if there is a likely issue I would probably chose to birth at the hospital instead of at home so that I can have the NICU/experts, etc. right there.  Not get a surprise in my bedroom at home.  That's just me.

[tbarnett]

All we did with our first was an U/S in the 1st trimester for dates (turns out I had identical twins with a subsequent vanishing twin) and then a 2nd trimester U/S.  I do Ultrasound for a living, so it was hard not to use that tool.  But, no blood tests for us, as we would have done nothing with the results but worry.  

[amyknits1076]

We'll probably have an ultrasound around 20 weeks, but no blood tests. We also wouldn't do anything with the information but worry. Praying that NONE of us have anything to worry about, blissfully peaceful pregnancies all around!!

[Mamma Mia]

So I have a marker for triploidy and I need to decide between CVS testing and amnio and I'm really stuck.  The CVS testing means that if I need to terminate, it's a lot safer for my body and less risky to my future fertility, because I'll be able to do it earlier, but CVS has a higher risk of miscarriage and damage to the fetus resulting in deformities of the baby.

So if there are any mamas who have done either of these tests or are thinking about it, it would really help me if you'd share your opinion and experience.

And if someone gets high and mighty on me about terminating a triploidy pregnancy, so help me I will reach through this computer.

[Quinalla]

I declined most of the tests last time as I didn't have any risk factors and I wasn't comfortable taking a screening test with high false positive rates that would lead to procedures with even a small miscarriage rate to verify. I'm ok with U/S for good reason (early one to check for twins (they do run in my family), etopic, etc. and the anatomy scan at ~20 weeks is what I had last time and one other quick one when they couldn't find the HB externally and my OB didn't want me worrying) and I did do the screening test for GD since it is so random who that affects. And they wanted to just give me a Rhogam shot since I am O-, but I had them blood type DH instead since we knew he was O- too. The Rhogam shot is very important if you need it, but I'm not getting it for no reason!

So yeah, I plan to do the same this time, though there was that post here about the more accurate screening blood test. If that is available here, I might consider that.

[snozzberry]

Originally Posted by Mamma Mia 

So I have a marker for triploidy and I need to decide between CVS testing and amnio and I'm really stuck.  The CVS testing means that if I need to terminate, it's a lot safer for my body and less risky to my future fertility, because I'll be able to do it earlier, but CVS has a higher risk of miscarriage and damage to the fetus resulting in deformities of the baby.

So if there are any mamas who have done either of these tests or are thinking about it, it would really help me if you'd share your opinion and experience.

And if someone gets high and mighty on me about terminating a triploidy pregnancy, so help me I will reach through this computer.

Mamma Mia, I don't have anything to share either direction, but no high and mighty here. Just as you deal with this decision.

[Lynann]

Mammamia, I do hope nobody here gets high and mighty with you. This is a place of support, and none of us should be worried about being judged.

I wish I did have something practical I could share, but I have never had to face such a difficult decision. I do hope that whatever way you decide to go that everything works out positively for you and the baby.

[porcelina]

Originally Posted by Mamma Mia 

So I have a marker for triploidy and I need to decide between CVS testing and amnio and I'm really stuck.  The CVS testing means that if I need to terminate, it's a lot safer for my body and less risky to my future fertility, because I'll be able to do it earlier, but CVS has a higher risk of miscarriage and damage to the fetus resulting in deformities of the baby.

So if there are any mamas who have done either of these tests or are thinking about it, it would really help me if you'd share your opinion and experience.

And if someone gets high and mighty on me about terminating a triploidy pregnancy, so help me I will reach through this computer.

I replied in the other thread, but I have done a bit of research on these. It seems like neither one of these is pain free or easy to go through. You really need to find out which of these your care provider specifically has more experience with, and what their specific miscarriage rates are, and go with that one. Most likely, this is going to be the one they perform the most. But find out specifically which doctor has the best rates, has performed the most, etc., and go with that one. It probably will vary a lot, and overall stats for the whole country are basically irrelevant for you at this point. You just want your best option given the docs in your area.

[jacquelinej]

I am not certain what we will do yet.  I have such a bad history...  I think I will wait to see how I feel about it at the time.  I knew there was something up with my son even though we did not find out until 6 months.  With DD I was high risk (she was right after DS stillbirth) so I did have every test imaginable.  She was early, but perfect.  I trust my feelings on these, weird as that sounds.