Anyone NOT doing the NT scan?

Lisa07 · January 2012

I know my time is running out to make the decision whether or not to do the NT scan, but I just can't decide. I don't have any inherent risk factors and honestly I think if there was something abnormal in the scan it would just make me a nervous wreck for the rest of my pregnancy.

Anyone else leaning towards not doing the NT scan?

micahalaine · January 2012

If I could go back, I would. I wish I HAD NOT gotten the scan. They told me I tested positive for d/s (which simply means your blood work came back as increased risk),and my u/s looked great,so unless you are getting amni test ( which I am def not) then you just have to wait it out to see. There are tons of false positives too. Had I known that beforehand,I would have declined.

bookworm982 · January 2012

We aren't doing the NT scan. We considered it just for the extra ultrasound, but since we had no interest in the actual test results we decided to opt out of the testing.

StokedWifey · January 2012

We elected not to after talking to the doctor. Since we're both relatively young and healthy, he didn't recommend it. He said there are a lot of false positives that can lead to stress and anxiety unnecessarily and if they needed to do an amniocentesis, I'd freak out. They can be so dangerous. Even if something came back, I wouldn't terminate the pregnancy, so why stress if I don't need to?

brycyn714 · January 2012

I didn't get it, but it wasn't offered to me. I don't think I would anyway unless it came with an ultrasound lol, I would do it to see baby. =]

nogitron · January 2012

We're not, either. Mainly because we'd have to pay for it ourselves, and that's just not in the budget! We're doing the double blood test screening, and that'll have to do. We wouldn't end the pregnancy either way, it's just for our own information/preparation.

I'm really jealous of everyone who IS doing it getting their extra ultrasound pictures, though!

JJorstad · January 2012

I didn't do it with my first two kids and I didn't do it with this pregnancy either even tho I had thought about it this time around. The closest place tho for me to do an NT scan is 6+ hours away and it just wouldn't work out around our schedules.

My husband figured since we didn't have any risk factors anywhere in the family, we should just not worry about. (He knows I am a HUGE worry wart!) Plus we didn't have the scan done with the first two babes.

packfan20 · January 2012

We didn't.

micahalaine · January 2012

StokedWifey:
We elected not to after talking to the doctor. Since we're both relatively young and healthy, he didn't recommend it. He said there are a lot of false positives that can lead to stress and anxiety unnecessarily and if they needed to do an amniocentesis, I'd freak out. They can be so dangerous. Even if something came back, I wouldn't terminate the pregnancy, so why stress if I don't need to?

I wish my ob would have told me this. This is exactly what I am going through. Then they try to convince you to have amni test,and I am not risking my baby just to try to better prepare.

jellyjellybean · January 2012

We didn't do it either time.

TeacherGirl17 · January 2012

I'm not doing the scan. I have no inherent risk factors and if there was something abnormal it wouldn't change the way I feel about the baby. Therefore, I didn't feel any reason to do the NT scan.

maykious · January 2012

We skipped it because the doctor recommended it, due to our ages, our lack of any family history of Down's and the risk of "false positives." When I pointed out that I would still want to know, just to be prepared, he said that checking for those signs were a routine part of the 18w anatomy scan (along with every other ultrasound I'll get during the pregnancy) and that even the slightest red flag would have me sent for a more detailed scan and further testing from there. So, even if something did show up, I would still know about it ahead of time. That's what convinced me the most.

It's a very personal decision that only you and YH can make, but I must ask you not to factor in the idea that the only reason to get the scan is if it comes back as positive, you would terminate. There is a much bigger and better reason to get the scan and that's preparation. I wouldn't have terminated, had I had the scan, but I would have wanted to be as prepared as possible for what it's like to deliver and raise a special needs child. If I have a few months of pregnancy to learn about it beforehand, then I won't be startled with the news in the delivery room and then have to try and learn everything I could about it within the first few days of the baby's life, surmounting the already stressful first few days of any newborn's life.

nattyb20 · January 2012

We didn't do the test either. There really was no reason for us to get the test done.

kookulai · January 2012

I didn't even know what that was until I started coming on these boards, I'm ashamed to admit. My doctor never even mentioned it. So...I didn't do it, obviously.

boxerbe123 · January 2012

We chose not to for a few reasons.

A) Not covered by insurance

I'm at a young age

C) No hereditary risk factors

D) I'm an extreme worrier, and anything less than a normal range would make me paranoid. The stress I would put on myself would be (IMHO) more unhealthy than the chance of not knowing something.

E) My OB said many things that would be distinguished at the NT scan (i.e. heart issues, deformities, etc) would be most likely distinguishable at the anatomy scan.

F) I wouldn't want amnio unless completely necessary

G) The hospital I will be delivering has the best NICU in the state, and it wouldn't change where I deliver.

H) We wouldn't terminate

It took some thinking but we realized all of this rather easily. That being said, we did do the NT scan with our first, it was covered by insurance at that time and I wasn't as confident with some of the above points.

Hi725 · January 2012

stringbeanarina:
We chose not to do it. Our reasons were that if the tests came back positive, we were absolutely not interested in having an amniocentesis. We also had no intention of terminating the pregnancy, we would not love our babies any less if something was wrong. IMO, there is not really anything you need to do to prepare for a special needs baby that you can't do once they are here and you know for sure.

I find this to be incredibly insulting. I had the NT scan and I had no intention of terminating my pregnancy. Frankly, I'm getting tired of people insinuating that anyone who gets the test is a monster that would immediately abort if something were wrong.

As for the last part of your post, there is a woman on this very board who has been very open about the fact that she lost a previous pregnancy to something that may have been detected and fixed if she had done the scan. There are many reasons to do it, but if you don;t want to, just leave it at that instead of making excuses that are offensive to others.

ral1985 · January 2012

majorwife:
Hi725:
stringbeanarina:
We chose not to do it. Our reasons were that if the tests came back positive, we were absolutely not interested in having an amniocentesis. We also had no intention of terminating the pregnancy, we would not love our babies any less if something was wrong. IMO, there is not really anything you need to do to prepare for a special needs baby that you can't do once they are here and you know for sure.
I find this to be incredibly insulting. I had the NT scan and I had no intention of terminating my pregnancy. Frankly, I'm getting tired of people insinuating that anyone who gets the test is a monster that would immediately abort if something were wrong.
As for the last part of your post, there is a woman on this very board who has been very open about the fact that lost a previous pregnancy to something that may have been detected and fixed if she had done the scan. There are many reasons to do it, but if you don;t want to, just leave it at that instead of making excuses that are offensive to others.
THANK YOU
or using this as a way to spread misinformation - see false positives

Yes Yes Yes

missusbee · January 2012

Sometimes I really hate this board. Why do I even post here!

mandalinn25 · January 2012

Hi725:
stringbeanarina:
We chose not to do it. Our reasons were that if the tests came back positive, we were absolutely not interested in having an amniocentesis. We also had no intention of terminating the pregnancy, we would not love our babies any less if something was wrong. IMO, there is not really anything you need to do to prepare for a special needs baby that you can't do once they are here and you know for sure.
I find this to be incredibly insulting. I had the NT scan and I had no intention of terminating my pregnancy. Frankly, I'm getting tired of people insinuating that anyone who gets the test is a monster that would immediately abort if something were wrong.
As for the last part of your post, there is a woman on this very board who has been very open about the fact that she lost a previous pregnancy to something that may have been detected and fixed if she had done the scan. There are many reasons to do it, but if you don;t want to, just leave it at that instead of making excuses that are offensive to others.

Exactly. I don't care if someone gets the test or not, but stop putting out information that is completely false.

We did the test, I am AMA, this is an IVF baby and we used donor sperm. There are so many unknowns that we felt better doing it. Not everyone's situation is the same people.

The only way I would ever terminate is if the baby was incompatible with life. This test has nothing to do with termination for me at all or anyone else that I have met.

mandalinn25 · January 2012

missusbee:
Sometimes I really hate this board. Why do I even post here!

I hear you. Some people refuse to step outside of their world and see that we are not all the same.

cbbsn2008 · January 2012

Nope, I didn't do it.

temporalrobe · January 2012

Shortcake2675 · January 2012

I have no risk factors and the test won't make me choose to do anything about the pregnancy, so no I won't get it done.

Additionally, my doc hasn't mentioned it at all.

uppereastgal · January 2012

missusbee:
Sometimes I really hate this board. Why do I even post here!

Twins. Right now I feel like David at the dentist-- is this real life?!

If there aren't any benefits to knowing that your child may have special needs or congenital defects before birth (because OMG I would never, ever have a shmushmortion!!!), you should also probably skip the anatomy scan... ::eye roll::

Hi725 · January 2012

uppereastgal:
missusbee:
Sometimes I really hate this board. Why do I even post here!
Twins. Right now I feel like David at the dentist-- is this real life?!
If there aren't any benefits to knowing that your child may have special needs or congenital defects before birth (because OMG I would never, ever have a shmushmortion!!!), you should also probably skip the anatomy scan... ::eye roll::

But then how would they know if they were having a boy or a girl!?!?!

My doctor told me that 75% of her patients think the anatomy scan is solely for the purpose of finding out the baby's sex. Yeah, because insurance would totally cover a procedure just so you would know what color to paint the nursery!

mtnmama712 · January 2012

No NT Scan here. It actually wasn't even discussed. Like someone else mentioned, I had no idea what it was until reading the message boards. We'll have an u/s at 20 weeks when it is covered by insurance.

Obviously everyone has a different view on this, and there's nothing wrong with that!

Bexi · January 2012

My OB told us straight out about all the false positives and how much it could actually make you worry for no reason, so we decided immediately we weren't going to bother. It wouldn't change anything anyway, we'd still have a baby at the end of term, so there was no use in doing it for us.

RobinaUMCP · January 2012

uppereastgal:
missusbee:

Sometimes I really hate this board. Why do I even post here!

Twins. Right now I feel like David at the dentist-- is this real life?!

If there aren't any benefits to knowing that your child may have special needs or congenital defects before birth (because OMG I would never, ever have a shmushmortion!!!), you should also probably skip the anatomy scan... ::eye roll::

+1

uppereastgal · January 2012

majorwife:
uppereastgal:
missusbee:
Sometimes I really hate this board. Why do I even post here!
Twins. Right now I feel like David at the dentist-- is this real life?!
If there aren't any benefits to knowing that your child may have special needs or congenital defects before birth (because OMG I would never, ever have a shmushmortion!!!), you should also probably skip the anatomy scan... ::eye roll::
but then how will i know what color to paint the nursery?

Dude, I wish I could high five the shizz out of you right now.

Ruthy77 · January 2012

We are not doing it.. I just don't know what I would I do if results came back positive.. My SIL has Spina Bifida (form of neural tube defect--which is believed to be from not enough folic acid in your diet during PG) but we are still not doing it.. So if the results came up positive for something what would I do w/ that? I'd rather not know--and I know I will be 35 when this LO comes along but I just would rather not know.......

uppereastgal · January 2012

Hi725:
uppereastgal:
missusbee:
Sometimes I really hate this board. Why do I even post here!
Twins. Right now I feel like David at the dentist-- is this real life?!
If there aren't any benefits to knowing that your child may have special needs or congenital defects before birth (because OMG I would never, ever have a shmushmortion!!!), you should also probably skip the anatomy scan... ::eye roll::
But then how would they know if they were having a boy or a girl!?!?!
My doctor told me that 75% of her patients think the anatomy scan is solely for the purpose of finding out the baby's sex. Yeah, because insurance would totally cover a procedure just so you would know what color to paint the nursery!

Every day I lose a little bit more of my quickly dwindling faith in humanity.Today, well, sh!t.

TamponMary · January 2012

For those of you whose doctors never mentioned having an NT scan, what kind of docs do you go to? Backwoods docs operating out of their trailer? Isn't this standard procedure? It should at least be offered. If your doc hasn't talked to you about testing and NT scans, then you should find another doctor.

And to the poster who said there's no reason to get a scan or test because there's nothing you could possibly find out that you couldn't prepare for at the time of birth. Seriously, I have no words for you. You might be the stupidest person I've ever come across on these boards and that's saying a lot.

Hi725 · January 2012

majorwife:
Ruthy77:
We are not doing it.. I just don't know what I would I do if results came back positive.. My SIL has Spina Bifida (form of neural tube defect--which is believed to be from not enough folic acid in your diet during PG) but we are still not doing it.. So if the results came up positive for something what would I do w/ that? I'd rather not know--and I know I will be 35 when this LO comes along but I just would rather not know.......
have you ever asked your MIL if she would have wanted to know?

Especially since many of the lesions that occur with SB can be repaired in utero.

TamponMary · January 2012

majorwife:
Ruthy77:
We are not doing it.. I just don't know what I would I do if results came back positive.. My SIL has Spina Bifida (form of neural tube defect--which is believed to be from not enough folic acid in your diet during PG) but we are still not doing it.. So if the results came up positive for something what would I do w/ that? I'd rather not know--and I know I will be 35 when this LO comes along but I just would rather not know.......
have you ever asked your MIL if she would have wanted to know?

Yeah because preparing for a child with special needs is too much of jolt to your fragile emotional state of mind. Best to live in a bubble, right?

Are you people for real?!?!

Bexi · January 2012

majorwife:
and please to be reading this good post on the NT scan:
Bexi:
We're not getting them done because the results aren't accurate enough to put our minds at ease, instead there are chances of getting false positives which would make me worry more. I'm just not going to bother.

There is NO chance of getting a false positive on an NT scan.

A false positive would occur if the NT scan said that your child has Down's (for example), and it turned out that s/he doesn't have Down's. But the NT scan never says that your child has Down's, because it's a screening test, not a diagnostic test. Instead, it might assign you a higher than expected risk of your child having Down's... but that's very different from a false positive.

For example, my friend (mid-20s, one healthy baby already, no family history of genetic abnormalities) was assigned a 1:200 risk of having a baby with Down's. This was much higher than expected. The baby turned out to not have Down's, but that doesn't mean the NT scan was a "false positive." In fact, the NT scan said that there was a 99.5% chance that the baby did not have Down's, which turned out to be exactly the case!

If you want to say that you'd worry more about being told that you have a 99.5% chance rather than a 99.9% chance of having a healthy baby -- fine, I can understand that. But don't call it a "false positive," because it's not.
https://community.thebump.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/61633312.aspx

Wow. Please jump down my throat for miswording something. Either way, I will worry, and that was my point. Forgive me for being so neglectful of my wording in the time of suffering from prego brain. >.>

jlthompson19 · January 2012

TamponMary:

For those of you whose doctors never mentioned having an NT scan, what kind of docs do you go to? Backwoods docs operating out of their trailer? Isn't this standard procedure? It should at least be offered. If your doc hasn't talked to you about testing and NT scans, then you should find another doctor.

And to the poster who said there's no reason to get a scan or test because there's nothing you could possibly find out that you couldn't prepare for at the time of birth. Seriously, I have no words for you. You might be the stupidest person I've ever come across on these boards and that's saying a lot.

My doctor never really asked. It's standard procedure at his office to have an u/s around 10-12 weeks, so they did the "scan" part there, but no bloodwork was ever involved. We have 2 anatomy scans, one in the first trimester and then one at 32 weeks. The 20 week u/s is purely optional, it's just for the sex, and it costs me $50 b/c they don't even bill insurance for it.

He did ask if I wanted another type of test done, and I originally said no, but changed my mind. But it's more for the 14-18 week window, so I'm assuming this is the CVS? I don't know yet what it entails, but I'll find out Tuesday.

Ruthy77 · January 2012

TamponMary:
majorwife:
Ruthy77:
We are not doing it.. I just don't know what I would I do if results came back positive.. My SIL has Spina Bifida (form of neural tube defect--which is believed to be from not enough folic acid in your diet during PG) but we are still not doing it.. So if the results came up positive for something what would I do w/ that? I'd rather not know--and I know I will be 35 when this LO comes along but I just would rather not know.......
have you ever asked your MIL if she would have wanted to know?

Yeah because preparing for a child with special needs is too much of jolt to your fragile emotional state of mind. Best to live in a bubble, right?

Are you people for real?!?!

Yes I am for real.. I am surrounded by friends by friends whose children have special needs and I know if I need the support I will have it to help me prepare.. I am also a worry wort who already worries about everything.. I personally would rather NOT KNOW. I have never asked my MIL if she would have wanted to know.. It's a mute point since my SIL is 32 and that kind of testing wasn't available then.

Why are you clearly so offended that I would rather not know? Seriously.

TamponMary · January 2012

micahalaine:
If I could go back, I would. I wish I HAD NOT gotten the scan. They told me I tested positive for d/s (which simply means your blood work came back as increased risk),and my u/s looked great,so unless you are getting amni test ( which I am def not) then you just have to wait it out to see. There are tons of false positives too. Had I known that beforehand,I would have declined.

I'm sure they did not tell you that you tested positive for DS. You heard them wrong. Or if they did say that, you should find another doc. The only way they can definitely diagnose DS is with an amnio or CSV test.

Jaylea · January 2012

Ruthy77:
We are not doing it.. I just don't know what I would I do if results came back positive.. My SIL has Spina Bifida (form of neural tube defect--which is believed to be from not enough folic acid in your diet during PG) but we are still not doing it.. So if the results came up positive for something what would I do w/ that? I'd rather not know--and I know I will be 35 when this LO comes along but I just would rather not know.......

You know there are some surgeries they can do in the womb to repair spina bifida, right?

I hope to hell you're taking higher levels of Folic Acid. My cousin has two kids with SB and I took a crap ton of FA as a result.

mtnmama712 · January 2012

TamponMary:
For those of you whose doctors never mentioned having an NT scan, what kind of docs do you go to? Backwoods docs operating out of their trailer? Isn't this standard procedure? It should at least be offered. If your doc hasn't talked to you about testing and NT scans, then you should find another doctor.

And to the poster who said there's no reason to get a scan or test because there's nothing you could possibly find out that you couldn't prepare for at the time of birth. Seriously, I have no words for you. You might be the stupidest person I've ever come across on these boards and that's saying a lot.

I guess that's where the misunderstanding is. I'm not seeing a doctor. I'm under the care of a group of midwives, so I guess if you want to call that "backwoods..." However, that could start an entirely different debate!

I haven't had an ultrasound and won't until 20 weeks. I'm low risk, no family history of complications, and this is what is covered by insurance. This is all perfectly fine with me. Others however prefer to have early testing and ultrasounds, and that is perfectly fine, too!

Bexi · January 2012

majorwife:
Bexi:
Wow. Please jump down my throat for miswording something. Either way, I will worry, and that was my point. Forgive me for being so neglectful of my wording in the time of suffering from prego brain. >.>
op had the false positive line as well as a few others that posted before you. in fact, i posted that post before yours. so i wasn't calling *you* out specifically.

I know, but you edited yours to include mine so I felt targeted. I was just using the wording my OB gave me, so it kinda triggered one of the irrational cries when I saw that. =/

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