Panorama and NT scan

hudson1029

For those of you who did the panorama, did your doctor say the NT scan was unnecessary? My doctor said the panorama is 99% accurate so no need for any another testing. Just curious what others are doing.

cinderin

I am getting one the dna tests done as well. my OB office still does a 12 week u/s to check on the baby for things the dna test doesn't check for. 

hudson1029

Interesting! What other stuff does the NT check for that the panorama doesn't?

KRB22

Lurking from January, but have learned a lot about this in the past few weeks. 

The NT scan measures the nuchal fold (which if thick can be a marker for Down syndrome or other chromosomal abnormalities), and I believe it will also look for evidence of heart defects or other anatomical issues that might present early on. It is usually done alongside a blood test to measure HCG and PAPP-A levels. The ultrasound measurements plus the bloodwork results plus your age are combined to give you a risk indicator for chromosomal abnormalities, like Down syndrome and Trisomy 13 or 18. 

The Panorama and similar cell free DNA tests look at the actual DNA in your blood and will flag potential abnormalities. All of these tests are just screens, and are not considered diagnostic. 

I initially did the NT scan and associated blood test at 13 weeks. When my bloodwork came back abnormal, I met with a genetic counselor who recommended we do a cell free DNA test because it would be more accurate, and a negative screen with that is very reliable. The HCG/PAPP-A screen, on the other hand, has a high rate of false positives. 

I did the cell free DNA test via Maternit21, and everything came back normal (after a stressful week of waiting for results).

If I could do it all over again, I would opt out of the HCG/PAPP-A screen and just do the cell free DNA test + an ultrasound. I'm not sure whether all insurance companies will allow you to do the NT scan without the associated bloodwork, though, which may be the main reason why a lot of people end up doing both tests. They want the ultrasound, and they also want the certainty that the DNA screen offers. Also, some insurance companies will not cover the DNA screen if you are under 35 and have no other risk factors, and it could be costly to do it out of pocket, so that also factors into the decision as well. 

HTH!

FreshBakedBrownies

My high risk mfm doctor had me do the Panorama cell free DNA blood test and I'm getting the NT ultrasound scan without the accompanying bloodwork next week. He said although not diagnostic, the accuracy of the NIPT test is far superior than the markers checked for in bloodwork usually done with the NT scan. They still can find early indicators of other problems on the ultrasound though, so I'm still getting that.

snarky14jd

My office offers the nt first and then all the blood tests. I got to see my McNugget yesterday and the blood test was ordered after.