Prenatal Testing

Tests are used during pregnancy to check your and your baby's health. At your fist prenatal visit, your doctor will use tests to check for a number of things, such as:

  • Your blood type and Rh factor
  • Anemia
  • Infections, such as toxoplasmosis and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including hepatitis B, syphilis, chlamydia, and HIV
  • Signs that you are immune to rubella (German measles) and chicken pox

Throughout your pregnancy, your doctor or midwife may suggest a number of other tests, too. Some tests are suggested for all women, such as screenings for gestational diabetes, Down syndrome, and HIV. Other tests might be offered based on your:

  • Who are aged 35 or older, because they are at higher risk for having a child with a chromosomal abnormality
  • Who have a family history of an inherited condition such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy
  • When their ancestry or ethnic background means that they might have a higher chance of an inherited disorder such as sickle cell anemia, thalassemia or Tay-Sachs disease
  • To screen for common genetic disorders such as spina bifida and Down syndrome

Some tests are screening tests. They detect risks for or signs of possible health problems in you or your baby. Based on screening test results, your doctor might suggest diagnostic tests. Diagnostic tests confirm or rule out health problems in you or your baby. Amniocentesis involves testing a sample of amniotic fluid from the womb. CVS (or chorionic villus sampling) involves taking a tiny tissue sample from outside the sac where the fetus grows.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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