Declined screening...anyone else?
Nancy6306
member
I had my first appointment 11 days ago and everything went well. ?My 2nd appointment today was more as a precaution and peace of mind in light of my two last pregnancies which ended in miscarriages.
I was informed of the screening that they offer women over 35 and I told the ob/gyn that saw me the first time that I would think about it but that DH and I would most likely decline. We declined with DD#2 as I was 34 when she was conceived and turned 35 less than halfway through the pregnancy. I am now 38 and will be 39 a week after this baby is born in October. I was asked again if I would be doing the screening (by a different ob/gyn in this group). I said I did not think so but I was leaning toward not having it done. She gave me a look almost to say "are you sure?" I'd like to hear what some of your experiences and decisions have been on this.
?
Re: Declined screening...anyone else?
My Blog
With my last pregnancy, I declined...I already had 2 healthy pregnancies, I was healthy, no family history, yet we lost our little one at 17weeks due to chromosonal abnormalities. Of course, the testing couldn't have prevented the loss but we would have known much sooner. This time, we did have all available testing up until the amnio. All u/s were clear, bw showned no elevated risk so we declined the amnio.
Again, not that having the testing had any impact on the final outcome except for providing peace of mind after what we had been through before.
I declined the screening, too. They're not 100% accurate and I knew that either way I would wonder if I was one of the 15% that got a false positive/negative.
I did have an 8-week U/S to make sure the baby was in the uterus (because I had an ectopic pregnancy in the past), but that was definitely a peace of mind thing.
Same here
we'll just have the routine ultrasounds this time around. If something shows up then we'll discuss further testing at that time. With our first pregnancy we didn't find out there were issues until the big ultrasound - I had an amnio done then and we learned that our baby did not have any chromosome issues but his birth defects contributed to his death in utero - he was stillborn when I was just about 22 weeks pg. Then I had an early miscarriage. When I got pg the 3rd time we had the NT scan and a lot of "extra" ultrasounds but no invasive testing as there were no signs of complications via ultrasound. She was born at full term and perfectly healthy. We feel like unless my life was in jeopardy we would not terminate a pregnancy so knowing there is something "wrong" isn't really a benefit before the baby is born - it would just make me nervous for longer...and those tests are not always accurate.
One thing to keep in mind is that doctors think differently about medical issues - at least that's what I have found. Until we leveled with our doctor when he gave us our sons diagnosis that we believed that God made our baby the way he was and we would not terminate our doctor fully expected that because he was not "Perfect" we would terminate. Now we are all on the same page about our religious beliefs.
DD#1 - January 2008
DD#2 - September 2010
This is pretty much what my DH and I have decided. I'm the sort that would worry more about positive test results than plan for the eventuality that the positive result is correct.
Good luck with the rest your pregnancy!
I don't really understand declining the NT. I will tell you from experience with my nephew having a severe heart defect, that knowing in advance makes those first months MUCH easier, especially if you have other children or need to go back to work. Some issues are caught at 20 weeks, but many are not. You do not want to be the person with a baby in the Pediatric ICU shocked that your child is born with a serious birth defect and is transferred within 4 hours of birth, and you can't even see them because you are in another hospital and it is all a surprise.
Oh and to the person who said the NT has a high false positive rate, it is not a +/- test. It is a ratio test, There is no +/-. I know someone who had a 1 in 600 NT who was the 1 who had a baby with DS. I had a 1 in 3 and my son is perfectly fine because I was the lucky 2 out of 3. The screening is about 2/3 -3/4 for genetic issues, but there is also a component that identifies other birth defects, especially in the heart.
I didn't decline the NT. And while I am a big believer in "to each their own" I personally don't quite get not doing it.
I have a client who declined it: Then were shocked and thrown into complete and utter turmoil at birth. I don't think she's really gotten over the memory of the situation in the delivery room, and watching them run out the door with her newborn to a pedi NICU.
Other side: I also have friends that had the testing and were uber prepared at the birth for their son's DS.
For me, the testing wasn't necessarily about termination. It was all about preparedness: The opportunity to prepare emotionally (and from an education standpoint) should we be given any news.
Again, to each their own. But I do believe in knowledge and preparedness. I'd much rather a few months to digest news than be shocked to hell in a delivery room.
Just my .02 cents
The last time I was pregnant (August of 2008), I was 36, and 2 months from turning 37 and we opted to go for the NT Scan..unfortunately for us, they found something they weren't looking for....a life threatening birth defect!! They gave our baby a slim to 0% chance at survival and that was only IF the baby survived the pregnancy...our baby had not grown any legs!! In hindsight, it was the worst day of our entire lives...but I am thankful that I went for the scan...who knows if and when that would have been discovered or how much further along I could have been....anyway, it's all personal choice....good luck with your decision....I just found out I am pregnant (today!!)...and am not looking forward to that NT Scan appointment but am trying to keep my faith!
I feel it's your option to do the test or not...me & dh chose not too and we lost twins in 2008 and no test could have prevented that...
I didnt hesitate saying no and my MW offered, basically told me that we should and I politely told her no. no regrets about my decision you dont have to get testing done and if you are going to keep your LO then there is no need to worry...so the "shock" factor people speak of that some get at birth can still be done with testing.....GL in your decision but dont stress over it....
I'm confused about what you mean by this?
No, for one thing, I'm a "need to know" person. And I'm very grateful for the screening process and a big advocate for being able to get knowledge ahead of time. But that's just me. I had a previous preg. and based on the first trimester screening tests we were given a 1 in 5 chance of a chromosomal defect, and we did CVS test and found Trisomy 18, which was fatal. It was a truly devastating experience, but for me it would have been so much worse to not know. At least we found out earlier rather than later what was wrong with our first little girl, and this helped us accept her passing easier.
I'm glad that everyone can do their own thing & find their own way. Admittedly, the screenings can be stressful & confusing, but for me, I am so very grateful for them.
We declined all tests because the results would not have altered my prenatal care and regardless of the results, DH & I knew we would proceed with the pregnancy. I'm 37 and this is my first pregnancy. While I know AMA comes with a whole slew of "extra cautions," I just didn't want to do anything that might disturb LO's environment.
Plus, the results are never 100 percent accurate and I would've worried endlessly that I could be that "1" out of 300 or whatever.
If LO does have special needs, DH & I will learn about how we can best meet those needs once she arrives. Until then, I'm enjoying being pregnant and am anticipating her arrival with a peaceful and hopeful mind.
It's a very personal choice. Information is good. As is hope.
Wishing you a happy and healthy and uneventful pregnancy!