I haven't been on these forums in forever, but wanted to ask now I'm just over 13 weeks pregnant what thresholds people chose to have an amnio at 15 weeks.
I had my 12 week scan about a week ago results were good NT, 1.2mm, nasal bones present, but when the bloods came back the risk for downs is 1/235, (Tri 18 was 1/390) considering my age (41) this seems like a good result but the ob said they consider anything over 1/250 for ds as increased risk.
As the risk for a miscarriage in ds is about 1/250 I feel really torn about this test and now the anxiety it is concerning both me and my partner. In fact it's stressing us both out more than it should.
What are peoples experiences here? Please don't hold back if they're negative I need to know! Did you chose a level where you would have an amnio or did you take the obs advice? What were the results?
I had an an amino at 21 weeks with DS2, but we knew something was wrong. It wasn't T21. In fact, he was chromosomally normal. Our risk with him was 1:6000 for T21. We'd decided we'd think about it if the risk was 1:300 or worse. I'm 38 now, so the risk level jumps up.
Given our history of loss, I'm reluctant to consider amnio unless there are other risk factors identified. It's a tough decision. What was the risk before the blood test? An OB we had for scans told me the bloodwork is only 10% of the final result.
Perhaps you need to discuss with a genetic counsellor before making the decison.
Btw, the amnio was painful but quick. For us, the grief was a compounding factor. I just breathed through it.
I'm not sure what the risk was before the bloods, I think it would be low based on the nt scan, however my age alone put me at risk of 1/90 (with no tests) so technically 1/235 is an improvement!
I have only been toldthe results this evening (ob rang me at home) and I haven't been able to relax since the call.
(Lionsandbears, that quote in your signature is one of my favourite Shakespeare quotes.)
If you're about 13 weeks now, you have time. I'd call the OB back tomorrow and ask for a referral to a genetic counsellor. Or call your state genetics service and ask for one. They're based at the main hospitals. In Victoria, it's VCGS.
An amnio can be done at any time up to birth. You may decide to wait to have a morphology scan first to see if something else is picked up. Or you may decide you'd rather know for sure sooner than later.
If you do have an amnio, ensure it's done by an expert OB who specialises in perinatal diagnoses. The general risk of miscarriage from an amnio is about 1 in 500. The experts should have a much lower risk.
hi buggirl, sorry to hear you have some extra stress going on right now.
my risk for downs for this PG was 1:291. which is only just within the 'high risk' of 1:300 (might be different in vic?) & wasn't too bad considering i am 37. i didn't see a genetic counsellor (although i think that is great advice) because the dr that did my scan is a specialist & was able to talk through the situation with me in great detail (he even gave me his mobile number & said to call at any time if i wanted to talk). i also talked to my GP (i'm going public & hadn't been to the hospital at that stage so no ob). we decided to go ahead with a cvs (we got our results at 13 weeks) - even though the risk of a m/c was there i was compelled to know the answer, i didn't think i could relax for the rest of my PG without knowing.
i was the same as you - fairly good results from the scan but the bloods put the risk up. i found the procedure to be quick & not too painful. we opted to pay extra & get the FISH results that are back quickly, rather than just waiting for the full results that take about 2 weeks. our results were good & i felt like i could relax knowing we'd had the diagnostic test. it's not for everyone but i think i would have been a mess if i'd had to wait another 27 weeks to find out. whether or not you'd act on the results is another consideration.
one other thing - because the procedure does carry a risk of m/c, i chose to go private & have the same doctor who'd done my scan. he's head of perinatal surgery at a big hosp in melb & very experienced. it was expensive but i could get in quickly & felt comfortable with him. i also discovered that the risk of m/c depends on the person doing the procedure so it's worth asking what their rates/experiences are as you will find some of the doctors have never had a patient who has miscarried following the procedure.
Amnio or not?
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