12 week scan, Down syndrome screening

[Diamondgirl13]

Hi ladies,

Had my 12 weeks scan today and baby was being a pickle!! Very active doing headstands and kicking but meant we couldn't screen for Down syndrome! The nhs won't scan again due to funding so we can either have a blood test which apparently isn't as accurate or pay for a private scan to try again!! Just looking for any advice ladies?? xx

 

[Medea1978]

Hmmmm..mine is in a couple of weeks.. i didn't realize that a lot of movement interfered with the results..wish I knew more about it but this is the first time I'll be having this done.

 

[Diamondgirl13]

I don't think it is common so try not to worry, this coz baby was on its head, the head was to far down in my pelvis for them to properly see!! Was bit of a nightmare, they called it bad luck (which I have a lot of, lol) x

 

[little moomin]

I think before you panic its worth deciding how important it is to you at this point - ie would you end the pregnancy if the child was downs (not asking for an answer but to think about it), are you high risk for downs already, would a blood test suffice. I think just because a test is available we get hung up thinking we need it, it might not be the case x

 

[Lady_Bee]

That IS bad luck! I think they ought to scan again really. But ho hum I don't make up the rules... How much do you have to pay for a private NT scan? Getting the combined test was important to me, because it is the most accurate screening test. But the other tests are by no means bad at all! I think accuracy is around 80% in the quad vs 91% in combined test, so 1 in 5 affected babies slipping through with a normal result, vs 1 in 10 for the combined test.

 

[pinkbump2011]

They take into account age, any pre existing medical conditions etc as well as blood test and scan but all you receive is a letter stating high/low risk etc but with the blood test if there is more of one hormone an less of another then that's how the blood combined with the scan makes it a high percent to spot any problems. It's obviously up to you but I assume with the nt being optional it is something you would rather know. X

 

[sun]

I am getting this test done, but it's a bit of a controversial test really. It doesn't give you any real concrete info other than high or low risk. And if the risk is high then you can get more definitive testing done (which has it's own risks). I agree with above about knowing what your plan of action would be if you were to be low or high risk. For myself I like to know the risks but would not do more invasive and potentially dangerous testing to make sure. But if you want to know your general risk, can you not schedule another private scan?

Also I thought the genetic screening included a scan AND two blood tests (taken weeks apart), not one or the other?

 

[georgebaby1]

I think its your choice i had the bloods only as i also couldnt get the nuchal testing. For me i thought if its high risk the next step is the same whether you have the nuchal or not regarding amnio etc.