Down syndrome testing recommended for expectant moms

[Guest guest]

This eugenic " cure " for Down Syndrome is the kind of cure historically

favored in the genetic research done privately by NAAR/Autism

Speaks/CAN and more recently, favored in the Pharma friendly Combating

Autism Act. This is the ultimate " early intervention " sought by the

CDC and friends. It's more expedient to get mothers to quietly abort

their unborn children damaged by environmental toxins than it is to

get causative industrial poisons identified and taken out of the

environment. I find it interesting that so much indignation is heard

when mothers want to use abortion to select for sex, but not for such

conditions as Down Syndrome. People with Down Syndrome are human,

too. Or aren't they? Which genetic attributes or " defects " are

socially acceptable, and which aren't?

BTW, another recent report says that domestic violence has dropped in

half over the last decade. It's amazing how fast the domestic

violence gene (apparently that Y chromosome) is able to mutate.

Lenny

Down syndrome testing recommended for expectant moms

By Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - There's a big change coming for pregnant women: Down

syndrome testing no longer hinges on whether they're older or younger

than 35. This week, the American College of Obstetricians and

Gynecologists begins recommending that every pregnant woman,

regardless of age, be offered a choice of tests for this common birth

defect.

The main reason: Tests far less invasive than the long-used

amniocentesis are now widely available, some that can tell in the

first trimester the risk of a fetus having Down syndrome or other

chromosomal defects.

It's a change that promises to decrease unnecessary amnios - giving

mothers-to-be peace of mind without the ordeal - while also detecting

Down syndrome in moms who otherwise would have gone unchecked.

The new guideline is published in the January issue of the journal

Obstetrics & Gynecology.

About one in 800 babies has Down syndrome, a condition where having an

extra chromosome causes mental retardation, a characteristic broad,

flat face and small head and, often, serious heart defects.

Age 35 was always a somewhat arbitrary threshhold for urging

mothers-to-be to seek testing. Yes, the older women are, the higher

their risk of having a baby with Down syndrome.

But it's a gradual increase in risk - from one in 1,200 at age 25 to

about one in 300 at age 35. Nothing suddenly changes at the 35th

birthday. Indeed, because more babies are born to younger women than

older ones, women under 35 actually give birth to most of the nation's

children with Down syndrome.

''It's clear there's no magic jump at 35,'' said Dr. Goldberg of

San Francisco Perinatal Associates, a member of the ACOG committee

that developed the guideline. ''We've done away with age 35 because

the screening tests have gotten much better.''

It's not just a question of whether to continue the pregnancy.

Prenatal diagnosis also is important for those who wouldn't consider

abortion, because babies with Down syndrome can need specialized care

at delivery that affects hospital selection, he added.

The original age-35 trigger was chosen years ago when doctors had less

information about the risk of Down syndrome, and the only choice for

prenatal detection was an amnio, using a needle to draw fluid from the

amniotic sac, he said. Amnios are highly accurate but were reserved

for women at higher risk of an affected pregnancy because they

occasionally cause miscarriage. A study this fall put the miscarriage

risk at one in 1,600 pregnancies, far lower than previous estimates.

Also today, women have more options. Doctors already frequently offer

younger women blood tests that don't definitively diagnose Down

syndrome like an amnio or a similar invasive test called chorionic

villus sampling _ but that can signal who's at higher risk.

The newest method, topping ACOG's recommendation for everyone, is a

first-trimester screening that combines blood tests with a simple

ultrasound exam, called a ''nuchal translucency test'' to measure the

thickness of the back of the fetal neck.

Studies from England, where the nuchal translucency combo has been

used for about a decade, and the U.S. conclude that screening method

is more than 80 percent accurate, with a very small risk of falsely

indicating Down syndrome in a healthy fetus. It is performed between

11 and 13 weeks into pregnancy, and women are usually given numerical

odds of carrying an affected fetus.

A woman determined to be high risk then still has time for an invasive

test to tell for sure.

Women who don't seek prenatal care until the second trimester can

still undergo blood tests known as the triple or quadruple screens.

The guideline also says women of any age can choose to skip the

screening and go straight for invasive testing, an approach that might

appeal to those with chromosomal defects in the family.

''This new recommendation makes a lot of sense,'' said Dr. Green

of the March of Dimes. ''Maternal age no longer plays such an

important role because the screening is better.''

Each test comes with pros and cons, and the new guideline advises

doctors to check what's available in their communities - nuchal

translucency testing isn't easy to get everywhere - and discuss the

best options with each patient.