Maternity 21 test

greenwl · June 2014

I did not have the Maternity 21 test done with my DD, but I am interested in having it for this pregnancy as I am over 35. Has anyone had the Maternity 21 test? If yes, were you happy you had it? What else can you tell me about it? I know it is a blood test that looks at chromosomes, but any other info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

harmonicbabe26 · June 2014

I had Harmony done which is basically an equivalent and I'm so glad I did. I am also over 35 and was worried about the possible issues. This test came back with excellent results (less than 1 in 10,000 chance of trisomies) and it made me sooo comfortable about this pregnancy. It really is just a simple blood draw, my results came back in 2 weeks. Worth the wait. If your insurance covers it and you can afford the copay (around $200 I think) I would totally go for it.

MrsDL · June 2014

I didn't have it with DS (35 pg/ 36 delivery) - It was new 3 years ago, I hadn't even heard of it. I had it with this pregnancy - there are no negative if your insurance covers it imo. Had the blood draw at 10 weeks exactly and the results were sent to my OB a week later. We still had to have the NT (because that provides other information according to my OB), but it was nice going into that this time knowing we tested negative (with greater accuracy) for T21, 13, 18. They also look for sex related issues like Turner's and like pp said, you can find out the gender (they detect Y chromosome or it's "absent" - boy or girl). I felt like it took a good deal of worry away compared to my last pregnancy - I'm a worrier.

BTW - be sure to not only ask if they cover the test, but if you have a 100% in-network plan, make sure they cover the actual lab (Sequenom for Materniti21) that does it. I have Cigna and checked - they said yes they cover the test. After the fact they said Sequenom is not in-network so not covered (under my plan). Ridiculous they say they cover a test but not the lab even though the lab is the only one that does it - they developed the test. Sequenom is appealing a denial for me, and I've filed my own. Worst case scenario I pay the $250 max Sequenom charges if insurance won't cover it (it is over 2K), but I thought I was covering my bases by asking and didn't even think to ask about Sequenom being covered since it seems to be common sense to me that if they cover a test, they would cover the only damn lab that does the test. Oops - min vent over this headache - sorry!

chauliodus · June 2014

I had the Maternit21 also., will be 35 at delivery. Will do it again if I'm ever pregnant again. Very accurate for Tri 21, 18 and 13 and also looks for other genetic issues, like DiGeorge syndrome. My insurance didn't cover it, but I checked ahead and they said to call them and they reduce the rate to $200. I got my scary bill, called them and magically they reduced the bill in 30 seconds. Easiest medical transaction ever. I really see no downside whatsoever, but I am a person who wants to know everything possible. Also had the NT scan since it does check for other things not covered.

bf43005 · June 2014

I did the Harmony test, like a pp said this is the same thing. We only did the abnormality testing and didn't find out if it was a boy/girl. That was a personal decision we made and waited for the a/s to find out. My insurance wouldn't cover it since I'm not considered at risk. But I called the lab and they offered me a cash discount. The cost was the original reason we were on the fench about getting it done at all. We wanted to be prepared for anything as this is our first. So when we heard about the discount we decided knowing was worth the cost. It was a blood drawn. Honestly, I can't stand getting blood taken and never look at any of it so I have no idea how much was taken. About two weeks later we were given our test results, and they were the best we could have hoped for. I think the peace of mind nothing is wrong is great, or being prepared if something does come up.

lightaftrerdark · June 2014

Check your insurance coverage and the cost first. My insurance authorized it, but it still would have cost us $1,000. We decided it wasn't worth it for us since we would not terminate based on the results. I am bummed not to know the gender a little early though!

Unknown · June 2014

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lightaftrerdark · June 2014

I apologize. I certainly did not mean to be offensive. I was only giving my reason that we couldn't personally justify it for our budget. Honestly, making the decision to terminate is pretty much the only reason the doctor gave me for even doing the test in the first place. I'm very sorry for being insensitive... and now thinking maybe I need a new doctor.

MrsDL · June 2014

lightaftrerdark said:

I apologize. I certainly did not mean to be offensive. I was only giving my reason that we couldn't personally justify it for our budget. Honestly, making the decision to terminate is pretty much the only reason the doctor gave me for even doing the test in the first place. I'm very sorry for being insensitive... and now thinking maybe I need a new doctor.

I can't believe a doctor would say that - I would be thinking about looking for a new doctor. Certain conditions require advanced medical care for better outcome - making sure you deliver in a high level NICU that not all hospitals have and require a little pre-planning to make sure you have a specialized support system lined-up at birth rather than a situation where you are caught off guard and have to scramble. It's appalling a physician wouldn't consult with a patient about these things.

lightaftrerdark · June 2014

MrsDL said:

lightaftrerdark said:

I apologize. I certainly did not mean to be offensive. I was only giving my reason that we couldn't personally justify it for our budget. Honestly, making the decision to terminate is pretty much the only reason the doctor gave me for even doing the test in the first place. I'm very sorry for being insensitive... and now thinking maybe I need a new doctor.

I can't believe a doctor would say that - I would be thinking about looking for a new doctor. Certain conditions require advanced medical care for better outcome - making sure you deliver in a high level NICU that not all hospitals have and require a little pre-planning to make sure you have a specialized support system lined-up at birth rather than a situation where you are caught off guard and have to scramble. It's appalling a physician wouldn't consult with a patient about these things.

Thank you for explaining the real reason to me. My doctor made another comment at my first appointment basically saying that I should only consider a natural birth if I'm a hippie... I was considering natural so it concerned me that she wouldn't be supportive of it. This is my first pregnancy though so I didn't have any experience to compare it to. But, this has made my decision to find a new doctor. I'm upset that she didn't educate me properly about the test, but I'm even more upset that it led me to posting something offensive. I am so very sorry.

indianaalum · June 2014

lightaftrerdark said:

I apologize. I certainly did not mean to be offensive. I was only giving my reason that we couldn't personally justify it for our budget. Honestly, making the decision to terminate is pretty much the only reason the doctor gave me for even doing the test in the first place. I'm very sorry for being insensitive... and now thinking maybe I need a new doctor.

Here's my experience. I did NT scan since it is routine. I was told I was HIGH risk for Down Syndrome (1::45) based on this test so I did Panorama (similar to Matern21). I would have NEVER terminated. I did Panorama because hearing "down syndrome" and then NOT knowing is pretty terrifying and lead to more tears than one can imagine. For those who say "I would never do that test" I hope you NEVER get put in my shoes then. It would make for a long 6 months or so with not knowing the truth.

I did it for a piece of mind...or mental preparation for worst case scenario. I was finally able to calm down once I got the Panorama results. Termination was never in my mind. Had I gotten the worst case scenario, I would then be more prepared financiall and medically as I would have needed more monitoring and so would the baby once born

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