The "Harmony" test

AOliveira11 · October 2015

hi ladies! I've been going through some of the older posts and read about the "harmony" test which is done at about 10 weeks into pregnancy and can test for genetic abnormalities as well as can see the gender of the baby.

I would want to find out about any potential genetic abnormalities that may occur, and if it takes an extra tube of blood, I'd love to know the sex of the baby early on as well.

Have any of you ladies done this yet or are considering doing this test? What are your pros and cons to doing it?

Bigboobsmcgee · October 2015

I'd speak with your OB about what is recommended for you. Are you older?

I'd also replace the word "gender" with "sex" unless you want a big 'ol heap of shit thrown at you.

CharminglySouthern · October 2015

Really the only cons I can think of is that your insurance may not cover it and it can be very costly.

tripledaggerWed95976 · October 2015

Harmony is only covered by insurance if ur doctor diagnoses u as high risk. Otherwise, just do the first trimester screening. It's bloodwork and an ultrasound that's done at week 12.

AOliveira11 · October 2015

We are doing invitro so I will have to check to see if its covered or partially covered by our insurance. Where we had 2 failed attempts already, i'm not sure if they would do it just to make sure there is no issue with the embryo early on, which I had thought they would have done after the second failed attempt.

tripledaggerWed95976 · October 2015

I did ivf. Trust me no matter what ur circumstance is, it's not covered by insurance if ur not high risk. It's considered unnecessary for anyone who is not high risk

RachieTK · October 2015

I just had the blood drawn and will find out results in terms of genetics and the baby's sex next week. My doctor does it as routine, and the max it can cost out of pocket is $140.

kyraaD · October 2015

i got a FTS screening done at 12 weeks which sounds similar to this harmony test you're talking about. i got 1 vile of blood taken & then an US at 12 weeks. based on what they saw in the blood test & US they could tell me the chances of my LO having trisomy 21, 18, & 13, which are chromosomal disorders. certainly didnt find out the sex of the baby tho. not til next monday

i would talk to your OB about it & see if you can still get it as there's a specific time frame you have to get it done in. i havent heard anyone yet mention that they have found out the sex of their baby as early as 10 weeks.

tripledaggerWed95976 · October 2015

^^^ this. That is what I was talking about. It's called first trimester screening- it's the standard for all non high risk pregnancies.

AOliveira11 · October 2015

Okay that makes sense, I can definitely wait for the first trimester screening. We are first time parents and so anxious to plan out the next 9 months. We took a peak at BabysR'Us the other day and I fell in love with so many things that I can't wait for our little buncha crunch to get here.

PugsandKisses · October 2015

I had the harmony test, but they did not run the sex portion of the test since I do not have any sex- linked diseases in my family.

kyraaD · October 2015

@AOliveria11 yeah, me & my SO are first time parents as well, & the wait from 12 to 19 weeks when we can find out the sex has been bruuutal. next monday cant get here fast enough (:

gorgeousariel · October 2015

@pugsandkisses Do you remember how many vials of blood they took? I think I read a post where they took 9!

wildtot · October 2015

I just had my genetic testing done and NT scan. I found out the sex but i think its an optional add on. My doc does these instead of the first trimester screening. They took 5 tubes of blood and they checked my thyroid. If my insurance doesnt over the test for the babys sex its going to cost me about 100 bucks. Everything came back low risk and we are having a boy! Took a week to get results. Blood work was done mid 10wks.

satuttle1014 · October 2015

I did the harmony test at 10 weeks but for me to find out the sex of the baby early would cost so much. That's the only con is paying out of pocket, at least I would have to because I'm under 35 years of age and not a high risk pregnancy. I had to wait until my 20 week anatomy scan to find out the sex.

seasalt123 · October 2015

They took two vials of blood. I had the Harmony test. Please note that there is something else called first trimester screening which is a combination ultrasound and blood test. It's not the same thing. Harmony is a cell free dna test. I know Panorama is another brand name for a similar test and there are a couple of others. You can do them as early as 9-10 weeks and results are meant to come back in one week. They test for the trisomy abnormalities, xy chromosomal abnormalities and well as the sex. The last two are optional. I Paid $650 out of pocket for mine. I could not stand the idea of waiting another month to find out bad news. I am not in the US but many posters who are have noted it being a lot cheaper. How long did everyone's results take? I had my blood drawn one week ago today.

PugsandKisses · October 2015

pooputtette said:

@pugsandkisses Do you remember how many vials of blood they took? I think I read a post where they took 9!

Only 1 or 2, but I already had my first pregnany appt. Each vial is only a few ML's of blood, so it is not much honestly. Most hold between 3-5 ml of blood.

gorgeousariel · October 2015

@ Pugsandkisses Thanks! Ive already had BW done so that will cut down on the vials.

pumpkinhead4 · October 2015

I did the test and I'm over 35. I liked having some peace of mind baby was low risk for some issues plus I found out it was a boy. We bypassed insurance was going to cost more that way. Ariosa does the harmony test and they charge $130 if you self pay with a 10% discount if you pay within 30 days of billing.

Mel&40 · October 2015

I had the Harmony test completed on Monday the 12th. I was 10 weeks 4 days. They said it would be two weeks. I wasn't asked if I wanted the sex tested, and I didn't inquire. Feel a little stupid now. I took for granted it was just part of the test from other posts I had read. I'm 40 and high risk. Cost was $130.00 and I was also told if I paid in 30 days I would get 10% off. Insurance wasn't billed. The waiting is torture, but I'm so thankful they can test this early. We want as much info as we can get about the health of our baby. They only took two tubes of blood. They are calling me with the results and we already have an appointment set up for the 28th to do the ultrasound screening to measure the length of the neck, and other extremities. Its supposed to confirm the blood work.

seasalt123 · October 2015

I got my results back exactly one week after I had my blood drawn. Mine went to the Ariosa lab in California. Mine came back low risk (thankfully) and gave risk ratios (so not a positive or negative).

Knottie98913877 · October 2015

It's important to actually check with your insurance--many plans do cover these tests. Mine covers it as medically necessary for a single pregnancy (not for multiples) as it has been shown to have high specificity and sensitivity at determining if the fetus has a chromosomal disorder.