Parenting after 35
mlamping
member
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First trimester testing
mlamping
member
Hello,
I need help. What test were you offered while in your first trimester and do you think they were worth it? I am so confused and not sure what to do.
thanks very much
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Re: First trimester testing
There was a similar post recently on the Pregnant After 35 board -- here's the link if you want to see what others have chosen to do: https://community.thebump.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/74401212.aspx
Here are your options for 1st trimester, in a nutshell:
1) NT Scan (non-invasive risk free ultrasound and bloodwork, gives you odds for Downs, Trisomy 13 and 18, plus can sometimes identify early issues with organ development during the ultrasound). Accuracy rate is 95-99%, depending on which source you believe. Can only be done between 11w1d and 13w6d.
2) Materniti21, Harmony, and some other similar test I can't remember the name of. Relatively new and some insurance won't cover it. It's a bloodtest that is supposed to be 100% accurate in identifying down's and Trisomy 13/18, as well as sex of the baby, but only if there is enough of the baby's DNA circulating in your blood, which is not always the case. Can be done any time after 10 weeks.
3) CVS or Amnio --- considered invasive tests because they involve taking a tissue or fluid sample from your uterus. Both are 100% accurate, but carry a very small risk of causing a miscarriage (about 1%). CVS is rarely done after 14 weeks. Amnio is usually done at the end of 1st tri or early in 2nd tri, but can be done later if medically indicated.
Then in 2nd trimester, you also have the option to do the Quad Screen bloodwork, which also looks for down's, trisomy, and spina bifida, but is NOT as accurate as the 1st tri screening. This used to be the benchmark non-invasive test before they came up with all of the new-fangled ones for 1st tri. Some docs recommend doing both the NT in 1st tri and the Quad in 2nd tri, which is then called an Integrated Screen.
If you opt to do any of the 1st tri screening, then you can choose to only do the AFP part of the quad panel in 2nd tri, which is the one that looks for spina bifida (which none of the other tests are looking for).
I did the NT in 1st tri, followed by the AFP in 2nd tri. The Maternity/Harmony tests were just approved when I was pregnant and not widely available yet, or I probably would have done that testing in addition to the NT and AFP.
It's a lot of info, and definitely check with your insurance to see what they covered and how much you would have to pay out of pocket. Good luck!
Elf was very thorough. What I did with both my pregnancies get the NT scan and leave myself open to further testing(CVS or amnio) if I was uncomfortable with the numbers.
Something in my blood gave me skewed numbers both times, so I had the quad screen(I think that's the blood test at 16 weeks) to double check things.
Never needed an amnio and both my boys are perfect, perfect, perfect.
My Blog
We had the NT and Quad testing done in the first tri then had the amnio in the 2nd tri at 16 weeks. Our insurance paid for both luckily. The Harmony test wasn't available when I was pregnant but there was talk about it coming on the market soon. If I was pregnant again I would probably choose the Harmony over the amnio. Good luck and best wishes to you!
ETA: It was very worth it to me to have the tests done but that was because I was terrified that something would be wrong with the baby (for no other reason than my age). It was a huge relief to me to find out that they did not see any signs of trisomy so I would do it again in a second if I became pregnant again.