Antenatal Screening
Seven hundred thousand women become pregnant here in the UK each year with more then ninety five percent resulting in a healthy baby, but in some cases there can be problems which affect the development of the baby.
Problems can range from physical abnormalities or mental health problems. It so good for both parents and health care providers to know of any potential problems ahead of time so that they are more equiped to deal with them.
Antenatal screening can help assess the foetus and check for any possible abnormalities, this is not a complete diagnosis but does help the doctors ascertain the likelihood of certain conditions.
One example of tests include amniocentesis which is not offered routinely as it is often quite invasive and unnecessary for the most women who have healthy pregnancies.
Amniocentesis
The word alone is nearly as daunting to a pregnant woman as the test. If your multiple marker screening determines that your baby is at higher risk for chromosomal abnormalities, your doctor will offer you the option of performing amniocentesis. So what should you do from here?
Try not to panic. The stress of hearing that there may be a problem with your pregnancy can be overwhelming. However, an abnormal multiple marker screening only indicates that the levels of alphafetoprotein (AFP), human chrionic gonadotropin (HCG), and unconjugated estriol (uE3) in your blood are not in what is considered to be the "normal" range for this stage in your pregnancy. Many women who receive abnormal results from the multiple marker screening, and even from an amniocentesis, go on to have healthy pregnancies.
Educate yourself. The levels of AFP, HCG, and uE3 in your blood during pregnancy can indicate an increased risk for the chromosomal disorders Down syndrome and Trisomy 18 and for neural tube defects like spinal bifida. Discuss your multiple marker screening results with your doctor and fully inform yourself on the disorders for which your baby is at risk. Genetic counseling can also be a valuable resource.
Decide what difference further test results would make. Armed with knowledge about each specific disorder, you can better assess your feelings on the pregnancy and determine how you want to proceed. If abnormal results from further testing would not deter you from continuing the pregnancy, then it probably would not be worth the risk incurred by an invasive test like amniocentesis. If the test results would significantly impact your decision to continue the pregnancy, then a test like amniocentesis may either ease your mind or provide more conclusive information with which to make decisions.
Determine which test to use. Once you have elected for further testing, discuss with your doctor which test would be best for you. Amniocentesis is the most common, but other tests like chorionic villus sampling may also be used.
Amniocentesis is a process by which fluid is extracted directly from the amniotic sac between the 15th and 20th week of pregnancy. Amniocentesis allows the lab to test the fetal cells directly for chromosomal abnormalities. Because the test needle punctures the amniotic sac, there is a risk of infection, amniotic fluid leakage, and even miscarriage. This risk, however, is still considered minimal.
Chorionic Villus Sampling is similar to amniocentesis, but it tests a sample of the placental tissue. The main benefit of CVS over amniocentesis is that it can be conducted up to four weeks earlier in the pregnancy. The results of CVS can be inconclusive or false if the mother's cells become mixed in the sample. Like amniocentesis, CVS carries risk of infection, amniotic fluid leakage, and miscarriage.
a safe and healthy late pregnancy
The instances of late pregnancy are on a steep rise since the last decade. More and more women in their mid or late thirties or even in early forties are becoming mother for the first time. This is primarily due to two reasons. Women are more career oriented these days. They want to gain success in their respective lives, before settling down into marriage. They want to enjoy independence, before leading a life of commitment. As a result, they have late marriage and hence, late pregnancies. The other main reason leading to it is great accomplishments in the field of science, which have made it possible to overcome the complications involved with it.
Factors Leading To Late Pregnancies
Besides the above mentioned reasons, some other reasons leading to more and more late pregnancies is improved and fool proof techniques of contraception. Even married women avert pregnancy for a longer duration, as they feel, it is important to understand their partner completely, before accepting the responsibility of parenthood.
Science Offers Solution To All Problems
The various problems associated with late pregnancy are listed below:
* Difficulty in conceiving
* Increased chances of abnormalities in fetus
* Difficulty in delivery
* Risk factor
Older women are more likely to be suffering from certain chronic disorders and decreased fertility, which make conception difficult. Improved medical facilities and scientific techniques easily help you overcome this problem. Fertilization can now also take place in a laboratory. The problems do not end here. An older mother-to-be has higher chances of carrying a fetus with certain genetic defects. Science also offers great help in this regard. Latest methods of screening the pregnancy in depth by carrying out investigations like ultrasound and certain blood tests can help detect such defects.
Older women, having a late pregnancy also have prolonged labor and difficult delivery. To counter this problem, pains can be induced to hasten the process of natural labor. Epidural is given to minimize the pain during natural delivery. A caesarean delivery takes care of complicated situations, where natural delivery can prove risky.
As soon as the woman notices certain symptoms, she can conduct a Pregnancy Test at home, with the help of a home pregnancy kit. This convenience helps the woman to keep a track of her own physical well-being and saves unnecessary trips to a doctor or a pathological lab.
Advantages of Delayed Pregnancy
However, late pregnancy also has some advantages, Women becoming mother at a later age are more stable and do not suffer from emotional upheavals. They are mentally prepared for motherhood and therefore can raise the baby in a stress-free atmosphere. They are also experienced and knowledgeable and hence they look at motherhood as a wonderful experience rather than as a duty to be fulfilled. Thus, science now makes it possible to have a healthy late pregnancy and give birth to a perfectly healthy baby.
written by expert - Apurva Shree
