Prenatal Testing

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Summary

Prenatal testing provides information about your baby's health before he or she is born. Some routine tests during pregnancy also check on your health. At your first prenatal visit, your health care provider will test for a number of things, including problems with your blood, signs of infections, and whether you are immune to rubella (German measles) and chickenpox.

Throughout your pregnancy, your health care provider may suggest a number of other tests, too. Some tests are suggested for all women, such as screenings for gestational diabetes, Down syndrome, and HIV. Other tests might be offered based on your:

Age
Personal or family medical history
Ethnic background
Results of routine tests

There are two types of tests:

Screening tests are tests that are done to see if you or your baby might have certain problems. They evaluate risk, but do not diagnose problems. If your screening test result is abnormal, it does not mean that there is a problem. It means that more information is needed. Your health care provider can explain what the test results mean and possible next steps. You may need diagnostic testing.
Diagnostic tests show whether or not you or your baby have a certain problem.

It is your choice whether or not to get the prenatal tests. You and your health care provider can discuss the risks and benefits of the tests, and what kind of information the tests can give you. Then you can decide which ones are right for you.

Dept. of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health

Start Here

Prenatal Genetic Screening Tests (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists)
Prenatal Panel (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Prenatal Tests: FAQs (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
What Tests Might I Need during Pregnancy? (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Specifics

Alpha-Fetoprotein (AFP) Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Amniocentesis (amniotic fluid test) (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Blood Glucose Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Chorionic Villus Sampling (CVS) (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Cystic Fibrosis: Prenatal Screening and Diagnosis (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists)
Down Syndrome Tests (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Glucose in Urine Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Karyotype Genetic Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Nonstress Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Obstetric Ultrasound (American College of Radiology; Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
Prenatal Cell-Free DNA Screening (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Red Blood Cell Antibody Screen (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Rh Factor Blood Test (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Strep B Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

Images

Amniocentesis - series (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Chorionic villus sampling - series -- Normal anatomy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Percutaneous umbilical cord blood sampling - series (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Prenatal ultrasound - series (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Amniocentesis (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Chorionic Villi Sampling (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Prenatal Ultrasound (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

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Patient Handouts

Alpha fetoprotein (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Amniocentesis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Chorionic villus sampling (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Monitoring your baby before labor (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Nuchal translucency test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Quadruple screen test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Ultrasound pregnancy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

Prenatal Testing

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