NT screen...

Stash2Sisco

Hi everyone

Had NT scan earlier today and baby A was just fine but baby B had a nuchal fold measurement of 5mm. They didn't even do the blood test part because they said the ultrasound showed then enough. We met with the genetic counselor to talk about next steps and needless to say I'm kind of freaking out. We're not going to do the CVS because it would have to be done early next week and that seems too soon for me to feel comfortable with. We're leaning toward doing the blood testing that can check my blood for chromosome abnormalities in the baby, and then once that result is in, deciding to go with amniocentesis or not. Does anyone have experience with this situation? I'm obviously fearing the worst case, where we'd be faced with the decision of terminating the affected baby, but I worry of the risk of that too, especially for the other baby. I guess there is risk either way! Any advice or thoughts are greatly appreciated. Thanks as always!

MrsCaseyK

They thought my cousin was going to have a DS baby after many different tests. with prayer and faith they knew they couldn't make the decision to "terminate" him. he was born just fine. Totally fine. As awesome as ultrasounds and other tests are I personally couldn't bet the life of my child on it, ever. 

You never know when a miracle might happen!

WeAreSmalls

I'm sorry you're having to worry about this. I don't have any experience with  the NT screen. Due to my age (I'm 39) we opted to skip the NT screen and just go with the amnio. I just wanted to let you know about my experience with the amnio. It was not bad at all. I know there is a risk of miscarriage but it is very low, especially if you get it done by someone with a lot of experience. I had it done on a Friday morning. I rested the remainder of the day and on Saturday afternoon I was Christmas shopping. Having the needle inserted was slightly uncomfortable but not painful. It took about 2 weeks to get the results back. I was very glad I had it done so we had the most information possible on the health of our LO's. Good luck to you in your decision.

WeAreSmalls

I wanted to add that even though I don't think I would have terminated the pregnancy, I wanted all info available so we could be prepared if one of the babies had a major health concern. It might have meant switching hospitals (even though our hospital has a NICU there are 2 other hospitals with even higher levels of care and more experience with the most difficult cases0, moving to a high risk OB or even DH or I quitting our job once babies arrived to provide full time care. I would rather make these types of decisions as early as possible and not be faced with a last minute decision under stressful circumstances.

Mrs.AshAsh

I had a CVS done with my son my previous singleton pregnancy because the results came back that he had a 1 in 39 chance of a chromosomal abnormality a trisomy or down syndrome. While I wouldnt have terminated, I chose to find out so we would know what the road ahead may have consisted of. The results came back as negative for everything and it was a relief but the wait was so hard! The CVS was pretty easy as well and as pp mentioned with the amnio, had a very slim chance for a miscarriage. I had mine done transabdominally, so in a way it was like an amnio but they took a piece of the placenta rather than fluid. They numbed the area that they were doing the procedure on and were constantly focused on my baby and his stats. If at any point they felt like he wasnt tolerating it, or that I wasnt, they would have stopped. As pp mentioned, as well, I was told not to lift anything heavy that day and just to rest as much as I could. The next day I was back teaching my fitness class and all was well. It was a really tough decision and I went through the procedure myself drove myself back to my parents house after...they were watching my daughter since we were worried about my husband taking off work they were doing some major furloughing at his job at that point in time. If you want to private message me or talk anymore about it, dont hesitate. Its a scary thing, for sure. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Reilly626

I'm sorry this is happening. I've had friends that were told there would be issues and they went on for further testing and the baby was fine. I think sometimes all these tests just make you nuts!

octbride1234

I am sorry you are going through this. It can be so scary. For us one of the babies had a larger measurement as well. We had the blood test done as part of the risk assessment. We did not pursue any other testing other then a fetal echo cardiogram which would rule out a heart issue. We did this because sometimes an increased measurement could indicate a problem with the heart. For us we would not end the pregnancy but rather we just wanted to know if there was any issues with his heart that would require immediate care following birth. Everything came back fine. At all of the ultrasounds they were able to confirm the nasal bone and measurements were right on track. There were no other markers identified. He is growing and is slightly larger then is sister. I know that we will not know for sure until he is born if he has DS but since everything has been looking good so far I feel pretty good about it. If we were to do any further testing it would be for the Maternity 21 blood test. That will tell you if there is a problem but when carrying more then one baby it will not tell you which baby has the problem. We did not want to do any further testing that could harm either baby. This is a personal choice and you have to decide which is best for you but keep in mind that this test was only a risk assessment and not a diagnosis. There are so many babies that are in this situation and are born healthy. Good luck.

Stash2Sisco

Thanks everyone. These positive stories and thoughts are so so nice to hear. We are making an appointment for the noninvasive blood test this week and we'll see after that about scheduling the amino. For now, it's business as usual and staying upbeat. No use in letting something bring me down before I know if it has to!