Do You Know What To Test For during Pregnancy?

Throughout pregnancy it is important to get tested often. Here are some important facts that you should keep in mind to get you started as well as some of the tests you should keep in mind.

Abortion

Testing for Hiv is now recommended for all pregnant women. Although the test is voluntary in most states, it is strongly recommended that everyone has it. Hiv infection rates continue to climb in pregnant women and many of those who have Hiv don't know they are infected.

Finding out will enable you to procure the important therapy you need, and by taking the drug Azt, during pregnancy, you can sacrifice the likelihood that your infant will come to be infected from 1 in 4 to 1 in 20. Most states now want that your physician or nurse-midwife discuss this important testing choice with you

It is natural to worry about birth defects which occur in 2 to 3% of infants at birth. Each year, there are newer and great ways to screen for some of the most serious defects. If one test indicates a cause for concerns, doctors will often suggest a more industrialized test to be sure that there is a problem

Amniocentesis is a course in which amniotic fluid is removed from the uterus with a needle inserted through the abdominal wall. It is normally done at 16 weeks of pregnancy. Later in pregnancy might be needed, if a premature cesarean delivery is planned, amniotic fluid may be tested to value the infant's lung maturity.

The course is complicated and expensive, requires a skilled doctor. It is not for everyone. Amniotic fluid reveals the following conditions:

For genetic diseases such as Tay-Sachs disease, cystic fibrosis, sickle cell disease, beta-thalassemia and muscular dystrophy. In families with histories of metabolic disease, the risk of a child having this disease is 1 in 4 if both parents carry the gene for the disease.

Chromosomal diseases like Down syndrome. As women come to be older, the chances growth of the child having this. Only 1 in 1250 women at age 25 will have an affected child, but 1 in 30 women at age 45 will.

Advancing age is one reason to reconsider amniocentesis. Younger women who already have a child with Down syndrome may be involved about having second child with this condition. Although this seldom happens, many of these parents may be concerned in this test.

Also a male fetus developing in a woman who carries the gene for hemophilia might be concerned in this test. Males can inherit this disease, but females cannot. Half of the males with carrier mothers will beyond doubt have hemophilia.

Amniocentesis is relatively safe, but ther are risks. Spontaneous abortion and infant blood sustem problems have occurred, but when done by professionals the risk is less than 1%