UK Wedding News
07/06/2013
According to the King's College London team who is behind the development, the non-invasive test can also be given to mothers earlier in their pregnancy, as opposed to current checks.
The study, which is published in the Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology journal, studied 1,000 pregnancies and found the test of foetal DNA in the mother's blood can reveal if a baby is affected or unaffected by Down's syndrome.
The study was carried out at the Harris Birthright Centre at King's College London and is the first to look at the feasibility of screening for the chromosomal disorders - known as trisomies - using foetal cell free DNA (cfDNA) from a pregnant woman's blood.
The tests were carried out at the 10-week stage on 1,005 pregnancies and were found to be more sensitive at detecting Down’s syndrome, returning fewer 'false positive' results than the initial combined tests usually carried out between the 11th and 13th weeks.
Researchers discovered that up to 98% of Down's syndrome cases could be detected, and experts believe the results could be used to help women decide if they need further, invasive tests.
The new test is to go on trial at two hospitals next month. It is understood it will not be offered across the NHS for the moment, but will be offered free-of-charge on a trail basis at Kings College Hospital in London and Medway Maritime Hospital in Kent.
The authors said: "This study has shown that the main advantage of cfDNA testing, compared with the combined test, is the substantial reduction in false positive rate.
"Another major advantage of cfDNA testing is the reporting of results as very high or very low risk, which makes it easier for parents to decide in favour of or against invasive testing.
"Screening by cfDNA testing contingent on the results of an expanded combined test would retain the advantages of the current method of screening, but with a simultaneous major increase in detection rate and decrease in the rate of invasive testing."
Around 750 babies are born with Down's syndrome each year in the UK. The condition is caused by the presence of an extra copy of chromosome 21, which occurs by chance.
(JP/MH)
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New Down's Syndrome Test For Babies Developed
A new test that could reliably detect whether or not an unborn baby has Down's syndrome has been developed.According to the King's College London team who is behind the development, the non-invasive test can also be given to mothers earlier in their pregnancy, as opposed to current checks.
The study, which is published in the Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology journal, studied 1,000 pregnancies and found the test of foetal DNA in the mother's blood can reveal if a baby is affected or unaffected by Down's syndrome.
The study was carried out at the Harris Birthright Centre at King's College London and is the first to look at the feasibility of screening for the chromosomal disorders - known as trisomies - using foetal cell free DNA (cfDNA) from a pregnant woman's blood.
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The tests were carried out at the 10-week stage on 1,005 pregnancies and were found to be more sensitive at detecting Down’s syndrome, returning fewer 'false positive' results than the initial combined tests usually carried out between the 11th and 13th weeks.
Researchers discovered that up to 98% of Down's syndrome cases could be detected, and experts believe the results could be used to help women decide if they need further, invasive tests.
The new test is to go on trial at two hospitals next month. It is understood it will not be offered across the NHS for the moment, but will be offered free-of-charge on a trail basis at Kings College Hospital in London and Medway Maritime Hospital in Kent.
The authors said: "This study has shown that the main advantage of cfDNA testing, compared with the combined test, is the substantial reduction in false positive rate.
"Another major advantage of cfDNA testing is the reporting of results as very high or very low risk, which makes it easier for parents to decide in favour of or against invasive testing.
"Screening by cfDNA testing contingent on the results of an expanded combined test would retain the advantages of the current method of screening, but with a simultaneous major increase in detection rate and decrease in the rate of invasive testing."
Around 750 babies are born with Down's syndrome each year in the UK. The condition is caused by the presence of an extra copy of chromosome 21, which occurs by chance.
(JP/MH)
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