Seeking Advice on Amniocentisis

My OB recommended an amnio as well due to my age. My father, who is a physician, asked me such a simple question that it startled me into an immediate decision.

1. If you find out the baby has Down's would you abort it? Would you abort it if you found out anything was wrong?

2. If the answer is no to any kind of abortion, then it is simply not worth the risk of the amnio.

During my third pregnancy (girl born HEALTHY October 17th) I had elevated protein. That is only an indicator that something MAY be wrong, and not just Down's but other chromosome issues. It is not a GUARANTEE of Down's or anything else, just a screening tool to catch what they can and there are many false positives with the protein screen. I did the amnio and although the waiting was hard (for the test results, a couple weeks)it was worth it! No matter what your results are or how you choose to use the information, it helps to know all you can about any potential health condition. Your baby is probably fine, but don't you owe it to your own emotional well being to know as much as possible? I felt that way. I know others who don't want to know because they are prolife. Even if you are prolife, why not gather all the information to help you and your family better prepare? Google amnio and I'm sure you'll see how low the risks are for the procedure itself. Determining the risk of months of needless worry is more difficult to substantiate. Best wishes, you'll make it!

I recently had my 3rd baby girl on Feb. 18, when I took that test it came back a little elevated as well and they asked me if amnio was an option. No, it was not an option for me...cause no matter how this baby turned out I was going to love her regardless. But that test does not only detect Downs. It can tell you many things from heart defects to something so simple. Well when my daughter was born she did have a few problems but it wasnt anything the NICU couldnt take care of. And she is a very healthy little girl now. Another reason I would not get an amnio is when a friend of mine got it done, the needle punctured her sons head and gave him brain damage. They said it had to be from the needle cause kids arent born with a hole in the side of their head, but that too could just be malpractice on the doctors part, I dont know. But I do know that it doesnt matter if my chid is born different, im going to love her just like I do my others. If you are concerned about having a Downs baby then have your doctor do an ultrasound, you can measure the back of the neck and that could also tell you if you might be having one...well good luck with what ever you decide.

I have had an amnio, it wasn't too bad. The risk isn't nearly as high as it was originally thought to be. It doesn't hurt, just feels kind of weird. As far as the downs syndrome test goes... I know one person who had the test, it came back normal and they had a downs syndrome child. I know a second person who had the test it came back with elevated risk and they had a healthy baby. If having a downs baby would change the way you handle things or you just can't stand not knowing for sure then have the amnio. Like I said, they're not that bad and the procedure isn't really high risk. Please feel free to send me a message if you have any questions about the amnio. :)

I had the amnio done because of my age (38) and I too was a little apprehensive about the small risk involved in the possiblilty of losing the baby. The proceedure itself is really not so bad. The needle is pretty long & when it gets inside the belly and moves a little it feels like strong menstrual cramps. The monitor sits next to you and you can see the baby ( & the needle) and possibly the sex of the baby ( although the results will confirm the sex). When the proceedure is done you have to take it easy for at least 24 hours. For me the hardest part of the whole thing was waiting the 10 days for the results. When I did get the call I was releived to know everything was okay.
I find it so amazing that we have this technology available to us to better prepare us for the worst case scenarios. Had the results been different for me , the knowledge of knowing what to expect just seemed easier.
Good luck to you and I hope all goes well.
A.

I would get the amnio, of course there are always some risks involved, but I had an amnio during both of my pregnancies. As I understand it, the other tests are a "formula" and your age is part of the equation. Since you are 29, it may be biasing the results towards downs syndrome (the likelihood of downs increases exponentially at mother's age 30 if I remember correctly).

If you have an amnio, the doctors will have a sample of the fetus’s genetic material and will be able to tell for certian if the baby has downs, since it is a genetic problem.

I wanted to know for sure if my babies had downs (I was 35 and 37 during my pregnancies), even if I wasn't going to abort, I thought it was a good idea to mentally prepare myself and have the time to become educated about what it would be like to have a baby with down's syndrome.

I had an "abnormal" test result also. I talked with a genitic counselor and they offered to do an amnio and this is the way I looked at it. The chance of a miscarrige from that procedure is like 1 out of 100 and I knew that even if the results came back positive, that I would keep my little baby no matter what. So me personally, I didn't need to know and didn't want risk losing my baby. As a side note: My little girl ended up being perfectly healthy and no DS.

I also had an elevated risk for Downs with my son after the 16 week blood tests (very common the more people I talk to about it). The doctor said the odds of a baby with Downs was increased from the normal odds of 1/2000 to 1/120 in my case (anything in the "more risky" zone of 1/200 was recommended for an amnio). Before having the amnio, I had an additional ultrasound to make sure my due dates weren't off as that can cause mistaken results (I later found out that ultrasounds so late in the pregnancy are not accurate enough to counter the original due date and blood test results). Anyway, after the ultrasound, the odds of the baby having Downs increased to 1/23, which meant for me that an amnio was the next logical step after speaking with a genetics counselor. Please keep in mind that the risk of miscarriage with amnio used to be considered 1/100, but my specialist indicated that the true risk is more like 1/400 now. It seems that if you would definitely keep the baby anyway and have no need to know ahead (like for preparing the family), an amnio may not be worth it. I think that is a highly personal decision, and you should not feel pressured by any responses either way (there are always people who will disagree on this sensitive issue, and, in fact, I chose not to tell some extended family members and friends about the amnio because I knew they would just make me feel guilty for even having that test, which is NOT what you need at this time). You'll find support no matter what you decide. As to the amnio itself, just don't look at the needle if you're squeemish at all. You'll feel a prick and then mild cramping when it enters the uterus, and the procedure usually only lasts, at most, a couple minutes. That evening I had heavier cramping and some spotting, but doc said everything was fine. The worst part was waiting for the results (I believe you can pay a higher fee to have the results within a couple days if this is important to you... I think I had to wait 10 days for my results). I gave birth to a healthy baby boy five months later. Looking back, I don't regret having the amnio, but I will re-think those blood tests in my next pregnancy (remember, an amnio may be recommended even if there's only a 0.05% (1/200) cause for concern). Good luck.

ya know i did not have one done but as a mother of two children i also had a elevated level for my second. I chose not to know because of something my mother said to me. It doesent matter whats wrong with them they are a gift givin to us and we should love r children no matter what. way the risks if you know your going to love and cherish this child no matter what dont do anything to risk the babys or your health good luck to you..

The question is, why? My mom was in a very high risk group having gotten pregnant (suprise baby) at 41. They tried to pressure her into an amnio but she refused, until an ultrasound came back with "water on the brain" a sign of downs but also other complications and there were treatments and procedures they needed to do depending on the cause. She then got the amnio to determine treatment but she would never consider aborting the pregnancy no matter what. My brother Eric is a bright light to the whole family and such a smiling, happy boy. He does have downs syndrome but we wouldnt trade him for the world. If you are keeping this child it doesnt really matter what is wrong unless you need to know for medical reasons. If you are worrying about it, or perhaps want to have some time to prepare then go ahead with the procedure. Good Luck, Jen

Unfortunetly, the test they do has a very high false positive rate. I know several women, including myself, that have had an elevated level for down syndrome. My first pregnancy the level was high, and I did not have an amnnio. The same goes for my best friend and a few other woman I know. My second test came back positive for spina bifida. A 1 and 13 chance. This time I did have an amnio. It came back negative. My boys are both healthy. It's hard, but try not to put to much stress on a test that is not very accurate.

I have 4 children and did not do it with the first two and everything turned out fine. Of course I was young 18 and 19 on those two so the chances of something being wrong with my babies was low enough not to take the risk. On the third child I was 35 and my results from the blood work came out fine so I elected not to do it. However in the last days of that pregnancy we realized I was having a C Section so they had to do it to check the lungs of the baby. Everything turned out fine. It doesn't really hurt, but it's a very strange feeling to have something poked into your stomach where your baby is. We walk around for 9 mos protecting our belly so when they do this procedure you just want them away from your stomach and baby. Lastly at 37 on my 4th pregnancy my bloodwork came back very bad. I was freaked out. The only way to know for sure was to do the test. So I did it. Before the test they did an ultra sound that also came back saying my son had a kidney problem. The Amno said everything was fine as far as the child having no retardation or deformaties, but couldn't tell for sure on the kidney. Well test after test of ultrasounds would have me going home crying as they kept telling me something was wrong with the kidneys.....Guess What??? My son was fine all along. Nothing was ever wrong with him. I worried the whole pregnancy for nothing.So at this point my advice is to not to believe 100% in any test. Spare yourself the grief. Most older woman have tests that come back wierd and their babies still turn out ok.

Good Morning E.~
Dont be so worried, you will hear lots of pros and cons to an amino test. My oldest is 14 now, but when I was pregnant with him I asked my ob/gyn to give me an amino test because I have a cousin who is downs syndrome. At first he didnt want to because he didnt feel there was a need, and my age at the time. I demanded it be done, so we proceeded with it. While it is a little scary it isnt all that bad. I also wanted to be prepared if I was going to have a downs baby since I was single parent. The test results came back negative.
I have done the test with all 3 of my kids, so I could have been prepared if need be. All of my kids came out fine, no down syndrome.
If your child is downs dont let that worry you. My cousin is a faboulous guy. He is 22 now and a highschool graduate with lots of big dreams. Downs children and adults are great people know matter what others might say.
I Hope this Helps!
Good Luck
A.

i had to have an amnio for my second pregnancy because i had high AFP levels. the procedure itself was pretty painless and i made sure not to look at the needle. it is a very strange sensation, that's for sure. anyway, everything turned out fine altho the doctor had the audacity to say *before* we did the procedure that high AFP usually meant a dead twin in there. nice, huh? he was quite puzzled that nothing was wrong and it seemed to challenge his faith in the AFP test.

they did tell me that the AFP test wasn't accurate yet as they were still working on it but that the amnio would be the final word. it seems to me that we are their guinea pigs with some of these tests.

i'd say, if you are willing to abort if it comes back with a negative result, have the test. otherwise, it will only cause you worry and it might be needless anyway. on the pro side, if there is something wrong, it might be nice to have worked through it mentally before the baby's born and then the doctors will be more prepared when your baby's born.

As you can see from the other responses, the tests aren't always accurate. If you did the test and it showed that the baby was going to be DOWNS, then you'd worry the whole pregnancy, and the baby could turn out to be normal. Or, worse yet, you may decide to abort a perfectly, healthy baby. Or, the tests could show a normal baby, and then he/she is born with DOWNS.

Why take the risk, no matter how small? Why put yourself and your baby through unnecessary stress? I say...don't worry about it, let life be what it is, and however it turns out, you and the baby will handle things together. Just love, love, love that precious little baby growing inside of you. That is what's most important. Once you are finally able to hold your precious gift, DOWNS or NO DOWNS, life will continue as it is meant to. Just breathe...relax...and focus on what's really important.

Hi E.,

My heart goes out to you but don't panic yet! Sometimes those tests mean nothing. An amniocentisis does give you peace of mind. But only have it done if you would change anything about your situation (i.e. Abortion) I had my first child one month shy of my 38th birthday. I worried about Down's and all the other complications. We decided to do the test because of our beliefs and concerns about being able to raise a child with down's. An amnio can be a bit uncomfortable and there are some risks. I keep thinking of the first two blood tests at the doctors office and the several home pregnancy tests I took. They all were negative, so medicine is not perfect. I wish you the best. Whatever you choose to do, you and your family will be ok.

I was given that same info when I was pregnant with my first child. After the test, I was told that I was not as far along as originally thought and that was probably the reason for the result. I was given an amnio later on and found out that everything was fine. There are some risks from an amnio, but if you find out now what your child might have, you can plan ahead and learn what special things they might need. I will let you know that it is not a pleasant experience, but finding out that everything was okay and get my peace of mind back was well worth it. Good luck, and I will be praying for you!!!

I had to have an amneio at 35 weeks to test my baby's lungs, I didnt feel a thing or have any complications or cramps after.I think for the peace of mind you should have it