Thoughts on First Tri Screening

lovetoknit26 · May 2011

Are any of you ladies planning to get the first tri screening done for trisomy 18 and Down's Syndrom? What are your thoughts? We are on the fence. The test isn't diagnostic, so more testing would have to be done if we got a "positive" result. I'm wondering if it would actually cause unnecessary stress...

Hopefull11 · May 2011

We wont be doing it.

peeper72 · May 2011

Depends on your approach and your needs. We will be skipping it as I must have a definitive answer so we will do CVS just as we did with DD.

JNicMTek · May 2011

We didn't with DD, and probably won't with this one either.

tiffymama · May 2011

We won't be doing it either.

nahokulele · May 2011

We're doing it...we did last time and it turns out the baby did have Downs and other complications. Thanks to the screening, we were able to prepare ourselves early for what ended up being an unviable pregnancy in the second tri.

In that case, we started with the NT scan, which is a simple belly sonogram. The nuchal fold was measuring very abnormally, so we skipped the bloodwork and went straight to the CVS test. That's when we got our sad news.

The screening usually involves the sonogram and blood work, both of which are not invasive, and most people are good to go after that!

chankins14 · May 2011

I won't be. I am in teh "Ignorance Is Bliss" camp. Plus, 2 of my girlfriends have had possitive Down's results & their babies ended up NOT having Down's. They both streesed & worried for months for no reason at all.

iluvmylab · May 2011

We will be doing it. According to the American Pregnancy Assoc, the "false positive" rate is only 5%. I want to be as prepared as I can for the arrival of my baby and make the best decisions for him/her. That to me means being as informed and educated as I can about possible issues. Insurance covers it, there is no risk to me or the baby, I don't know why I wouldn't do it. I will worry either way, so worry is not a determining factor for me.

GoldenPeaches · May 2011

We are doing it for a few reasons, listed in no particular order:

1. It is 100% covered by my health insurance, so it's free

2. The results would impact where I choose to deliver. Right now, I am delivering at a birth center, but if there were complications I would transfer to the best hospital around in a heart beat.

3. If it does turn out something is wrong, I would want to know before the baby arrived so I could grieve without a newborn and crazy hormones.

4. There are certain surgeries that can be done in-utero to correct certain abnormalities. I'd hate to birth a baby and then realize the surgery would have been much easier had we done it in 2nd tri.

5. It's another look at my baby and how could I refuse that?

To each their own, but to me knowledge is power. Under no circumstance would I terminate, but I like to know as much as I can.

GoldenPeaches · May 2011

After reading the other responses, I want to clarify that the NT scan is not definitive yes or no for DS. They will give you a chance, i.e. 1 in 6,000 or 1 in 10. Only the more invasive tests (CVS or amnio) can tell you for sure.

lovetoknit26 · May 2011

Thanks for everyone's responses so far. It isn't free for us: I believe it would end up costing around $200 after all is said and done. It really isn't much to pay for knowledge. Thanks, GoldenPeaches for explaining how the test results actually work. I knew it wasn't diagnostic, but I didn't realize that they gave you a chance as you explained.

Leap08 · May 2011

chankins14:
I won't be. I am in teh "Ignorance Is Bliss" camp. Plus, 2 of my girlfriends have had possitive Down's results & their babies ended up NOT having Down's. They both streesed & worried for months for no reason at all.

An NT scan doesn't give you positive or negative results. It gives you odds. So, your friends' results came back with high odds, which doesn't mean your baby has Down's. I, personally, wouldn't stress and worry for months over a test result with high odds. I would do CVS at that point so we would know conclusively. I'm a planner, though, and if something was wrong I absolutely would want to know. The NT scan is non-invasive, so I think it's a great place to start.

DiademChi · May 2011

My philosophy is that testing won't change anything. If it's positive, I'm not terminating the pregnancy. We will still do our best to love and provide for a child with special needs.

I hope and prefer my child is healthy in mind and body, but knowing in advance will just give me stress. I'm going to assume the best and wait for the child to be placed in my arms.

karaknr · May 2011

We will be having the NT scan because it is free for us and because I want to know what, if anything, we will be up against. Termination is not an option, but being informed is important to me. I agree with the PP that if something is wrong I want that chance to be able to grieve and accept a new reality without the baby right there. That way when the baby comes I can just be happy because I knew exactly what his/her health issues were a long time ago.

It's a personal decision though and one only you and your H can make.

asyph107 · May 2011

we didnt do it with DS and wont with this LO. just causes excessive worry with little facts.

sportsmomma · May 2011

DiademChi:
My philosophy is that testing won't change anything. If it's positive, I'm not terminating the pregnancy. We will still do our best to love and provide for a child with special needs.
I hope and prefer my child is healthy in mind and body, but knowing in advance will just give me stress. I'm going to assume the best and wait for the child to be placed in my arms.

This exactly!

MrsT2008 · May 2011

iluvmylab:
We will be doing it. According to the American Pregnancy Assoc, the "false positive" rate is only 5%. I want to be as prepared as I can for the arrival of my baby and make the best decisions for him/her. That to me means being as informed and educated as I can about possible issues. Insurance covers it, there is no risk to me or the baby, I don't know why I wouldn't do it. I will worry either way, so worry is not a determining factor for me.

This exactly.

For me, knowledge is power. The outcome of the scan/bloodwork will allow me to best prepare for my child

KYmama9286 · May 2011

We wont be doing it because it wont change the outcome for anything and as a parent of a child with special needs I can say from my personal experience-- nothing can prepare you for the experiences you face in the beginning. No matter what you read, who you talk to, etc. its not the same as having to deal with it with YOUR child. Plus with many conditions, there is such a spectrum of symptoms and complications that you wont really be able to prepare much until the child arrives. Doctors dont generally set up treatment plans for a child that isnt even born yet.

I could understand like pp said that it might effect where you deliver but for many/most serious medical conditions there are ways to spot them during your 20 week anatomy scan that insurance DOES cover because it is still often early enough to work as an early diagnostic tool. If you are concerned about Downs Syndrome, there are markers that will show up on the 20 week scan and they will be much more definitive then. For me with my last pregnancy we found out about some of DS's potential problems at my 20 week scan and I honestly wish that I hadnt found out. I had so much stress and so much info to process it was really just too much plus in the end most of it wasnt even applicable to my childs condition. Sorry if this is a long rambly post but I feel strongly about these kinds of tests and I would hate to have someone spend their entire pregnancy planning for the worst when they dont need to be.

BrittDanX · May 2011

::Lurking from the Sept 2011 board because I have a dear friend on this board::

Just to give everyone a clear idea of what the NT test is, it does NOT only test for downs. It tests for all of the Trisomy's, spina bifida and any major organ defects, too. There was a sweet September mom on my board that got the test done and the Dr found a hole in the baby's heart. It was suffering and would not make it to term. For those that say "I would not terminate no matter what," you NEVER know what you will decide once told your baby is suffering. Another Sept mom found out her babies organs were growing on the outside and again suffering and would not make it. They would have never known that early without the testing.

I would HIGHLY recommend this screening. If for nothing else, you get to see your little one for a good 45 minutes and probably a few times in 3D/4D.

helloshannon · May 2011

my OB automatically does the AFP4 test and give the option of the Early Risk Assessment (ERA) test. We will do the AFP4 screening but not the ERA. Later on we will also do NT.

nahokulele · May 2011

BrittDanX:
For those that say "I would not terminate no matter what," you NEVER know what you will decide once told your baby is suffering.

This is a very good point, thank you.

jordanmd89 · May 2011

DiademChi:

My philosophy is that testing won't change anything. If it's positive, I'm not terminating the pregnancy. We will still do our best to love and provide for a child with special needs.

I hope and prefer my child is healthy in mind and body, but knowing in advance will just give me stress. I'm going to assume the best and wait for the child to be placed in my arms.

Same!

lvisser · May 2011

We did not do it with the first two since it was not covered by our insurance. This time it is covered 100% - and i will take any reason to see my lil bean in 4 weeks!

uncharch7 · May 2011

ours is covered 100%. for that and the fact that i'm in the knowledge is power camp, we will be doing it.

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