[Natttmumm]

Thanks for the replies. I just wanted to add I am 32 and my other children are nearly 3 and 4.5. So it has been a few years. I didn't get the exact numbers but I was told that one hormone was higher and one lower than it should have been. We are booked for the amnio at 15 weeks. I have some concerns there but I think we need to know and the obyn told us its not that risky to do the amnio althought there is a small real risk

[Penguin78]

Just to clear up some misinformation above.

The high HCG, low Papp-a has been found to be another indication for Downs and has been known to pick up more instances of Downs then just thr nuchal fold and nose measurement. So just because those measurements were good, does not discount the high risk shown in the bloods.

So I know this isn't helpful news to the OP, however, as has been mentioned the particular blood result can also indicate problems with baby weight, blood pressure etc so if you do get the all clear from the amino, they will monitor those things a bit closer then normal.

I had a 1:34 chance of Downs because of my bloods. A CVS came back all clear, but I did end up with pre-eclampsia. So it was good they monitored my blood pressure.

Good luck!

[lisahoping]

Hi op,
I understand your worries. I went for mine last week and although the scan was good, my bloods and other factors meant I got a risk of 1:42 for downs. I'm 42 years old and this is my first and I guess last pregnancy.I spent a few hours completely devastated but bit by bit I have come to terms with it. As my doc pointed out its almost a 98% chance everything will be ok which is better odds than I had for not miscarry ing in the first trimester. So when I look at it like that it's not too bad. Obviously id have loved odds of 1:900000! Lol but as he also pointed out even with those odds you could still be the 1.Anyway I've accepted it and am part way to accepting that even if the baby has downs, it's still my baby and will be loved and cherished. I do understand that this isn't for everyone though and I'm not fully there yet myself. Slowly slowly I reckon.I won't be having the amnio or cvs, again personal choice...I don't want an invasive procedure. I'm now hanging out for my morph scan which I think they will do early. As long as everything is developing as it should be, I will breath a sigh of relief. I'm praying that it's healthy, downs or not.I'm no expert but I think my bloods probably indicate a potential to develop pre Eclampsia, as I have suffered high blood pressure before and so they could merely be indicating something like that.I hope you are doing ok and that everything works out for you! Take care x

[Lainskii]

Just to clear up some misinformation above.

The high HCG, low Papp-a has been found to be another indication for Downs and has been known to pick up more instances of Downs then just thr nuchal fold and nose measurement. So just because those measurements were good, does not discount the high risk shown in the bloods.

So I know this isn't helpful news to the OP, however, as has been mentioned the particular blood result can also indicate problems with baby weight, blood pressure etc so if you do get the all clear from the amino, they will monitor those things a bit closer then normal.

I had a 1:34 chance of Downs because of my bloods. A CVS came back all clear, but I did end up with pre-eclampsia. So it was good they monitored my blood pressure.

Good luck!

It is true that low PAPPA and high HCG pick up downs syndrome but it is usually in cases where the nuchal fold and nasal bone presence are not good as well. The majority of cases where the bloods aren't good and the scan are good are usually not the '1'
That being said, the test are all about statistics and averages and there are cases where the nuchal fold has been small and the nasal bone appeared 'present' yet the child had chromosnal abnormalities.

OP - not that I'm trying to discourage you from having an amnio (I had one after weighing up my risks and the need to know) just make sure you understand the risk of having an amnio.
in your last post you said that the OB said that it is a 'small risk'
The current Australia wide risk is about 1:250 (so the risk is actually higher than your NT result risk) of a miscarriage and depending on the place where you have your amnio done the risk can be higher or lower than that. The risk is purely based on 'user error' - so the experience of the person doing your amnio. The US clinic I had mine done said that based on their own clinics statistics their risk was close to 1:400 (better than my 1:32 risk) and they did the procedure at least twice a week which I was comfortable with.

[Libertine]

Similar situation happened to me. My bloods were 'bad' due to low PappA. My hcg was more normal. I chose not to do amnio/cvs but had my 18-22 week scan early (at 18 weeks on the dot) which picked up no further soft markers. This was enough to reassure me. If there had been soft markers it was still possible to do an amnio at this stage.

From my research low Papp A can indicate possible problems with the functioning of the placenta which could lead to IUGR (growth issues) amongst other things. However my Ob assures me that this can be monitored through more regular scans etc.

In terms of the risk from amnio it is a personal decision. Personally i would not do it if the risk of miscarriage was higher than the risk of downs. A risk is a risk. There are women on these boards who have lost healthy baby's after an amnio. I'm not trying to be alarmist, but it is a fact that there is risk.

There is a support group in the Specialised Pregnancy Support Groups section of EB. I found those ladies very well informed and a good source of information, support and reassurance.

Best of luck OP. I've been through it and it's incredibly stressful.

[soontobegran]

I don't think we should try and talk you out of your decision OP because you need to do what is right for you but I do agree with PP and when the risk of the amnio are more than the risk of some anomoly I'd definitely choose to give it a miss, particularly when the scan indicated normal and the bloods only gave you a minimal risk factor.

Lots of good luck and wishing you a happy and healthy pregnancy.

[Princess.cranky....]

OP I was 35 when I was PG with DD1. My risk came back at 1 in 386. We were advised that further testing was not necessary as it was a good result. And the risk of miscarriage from the amnio was higher than the risk of something being wrong. It was a risk we did not want to take.

DD is a very healthy 7 year old so I hope that gives you some hope.

I don't think we should try and talk you out of your decision OP because you need to do what is right for you but I do agree with PP and when the risk of the amnio are more than the risk of some anomoly I'd definitely choose to give it a miss, particularly when the scan indicated normal and the bloods only gave you a minimal risk factor.

Agree. And I disagree with the DR saying the risk is minimal. I think the risk of miscarriage being higher than something being wrong with the baby is a big risk.

All the best with the pregnancy.

[palm05]

I had my NT and bloods done last Thursday @ 12.4 weeks. The scan was great and showed all the right bits in all the right places - the radiographer was happy, we were happy. I received a call from my doc yesterday to tell me results were not good. The clinic had actually called him on the Friday they were so concerned but still had to wait for the bloods. So my NT results are 1:2 (not a typo) for tri 21. I didn't even think they could be that high risk. We have an appointment with a specialist next week for amnio. I was so hoping to be able to tell my boys this weekend about the baby - but now we will wait. I don't think I could put them through the pain of losing a little brother or sister. Has anyone ever heard of results like this???

[MyButterflyGirls]

I had my NT and bloods done last Thursday @ 12.4 weeks. The scan was great and showed all the right bits in all the right places - the radiographer was happy, we were happy. I received a call from my doc yesterday to tell me results were not good. The clinic had actually called him on the Friday they were so concerned but still had to wait for the bloods. So my NT results are 1:2 (not a typo) for tri 21. I didn't even think they could be that high risk. We have an appointment with a specialist next week for amnio. I was so hoping to be able to tell my boys this weekend about the baby - but now we will wait. I don't think I could put them through the pain of losing a little brother or sister. Has anyone ever heard of results like this???

A family member of mine had a result of 1:2 for Trisomy 21 and went on to have a CVS. They were on the wrong side of the 1 in 2.

This post has been edited by FourthTimeLucky: 09/08/2012, 08:13 PM

[Penguin78]

When we had genetic counselling after our result (1:32) she did say that she had seen a case that was 1:2 and the baby was fine.

Hope that gives u some hope, good luck in making your decision for further testing

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