Amniocentesis Testing Safer now than previously
Nov 5th, 2006 by Lilian
When I was pregnant with my fifth baby, the ob-gynae did suggest to me to do an amnio because I was already 38 years old and with a previous premature birth. However, I look straight into my ob-gynae’s eyes and told him a strict, “NO, it is not going to change anything. Whether this baby has some problems or not, I am going to carry it through. And I am all prepared for whatever outcome.”
Back then, it was a known fact that one in every 200 pregnancies may end up with a miscarriage due to the risks related to amnio tests. Once, I attended a doctors’ conference and one of our country most respected ob-gynae from the Government hospital told the hall, “Let’s say there are 200 of you (the nurses/female doctors), one of you will probably cause the loss of your healthy baby.” So, personally, I am against the idea of any tests because I would rather fall back on faith.
However, recent studies showed that the risk has dropped to one in 1,600 pregnancies. Then, again, there is still a chance of a false positive. Some woman may unknowingly aborts her perfectly normal baby if the test is inaccurate and shows that the baby suffers from Down Syndrome or other genetic diseases when the baby is not. See? It is not too much of a risk and I am totally against aborting any babies, regardless. Unless the mother’s live is threaten to the verge of death.
Amniocentesis Testing Safer than Previously Though
By Alice Park | Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2006 | Permalink
For over a century, the best way to screen for genetic and chromosomal defects in a developing fetus involved inserting a long needle through a pregnant mom’s abdomen and into the amniotic sac cushioning the growing baby. By removing a small sample of the fluid and performing genetic tests, doctors and parents could detect the presence of defects, including the extra chromosome characteristic of Down syndrome.
Because the procedure requires inserting a needling into the protective amniotic sac, however, studies from the 1970s showed that one in 200 otherwise normal pregnancies ended in miscarriage after amniocentesis.
Researchers at Mount Sinai School Medicine decided to update the statistic, and studied a more contemporary patient population of pregnant women getting amniocentesis to detect Down syndrome. Reporting in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology, they found that the risk of miscarriage associated with the test was actually lower. Among their 35,000 patients who underwent the screening, the amniocentesis-related miscarriage rate was 0.06%, or one in 1600 pregnancies. (source TIME.com)
The ob-gynae closed his talk with something from our country’s percept (Rukunegara). “Belief in God”, Kepercayaan kepada Tuhan.