Amniocentesis Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Amniocentesis, including details on pregnancy, prenatal screening, diagnosis, risks, down syndrome.

Decision Making and Attitudes towards Invasive Prenatal Diagnosis in the Early Second Trimester.

Willruth A, Vieten J, Berg C, Gembruch U, Geipel A

Obstetrics and Prenatal Medicine, University Hospital Bonn.

PURPOSE: To investigate the impact of the a priori attitude, nondirective counselling and targeted second trimester ultrasound examination on the decision process concerning invasive prenatal diagnosis in the second trimester. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A prospective study including 696 high-risk pregnancies at 15 to 18 weeks' gestation, performed from 2005 - 2007. Attitudes towards invasive prenatal testing were explored before and after genetic counselling and targeted ultrasound examination in a tertiary referral centre. RESULTS: Initially, 311 (44.7 %) women intended to have an invasive testing (group 1), 150 women (21.5 %) were against an invasive procedure (group 2), and 235 women (33.8 %) wanted to make their final decision depending on the sonographic result (group 3). The total rate of amniocentesis was 87.1 %, 5.3 % and 13.6 %, respectively. Overall, the a priori decision was sparsely influenced by the ultrasound examination. Only 12.9 % (40 / 311) and 5.3 % (8 / 150) of the primarily determined women (group 1, 2) changed their opinion. However, in the initially undecided group, 86.7 % declined an amniocentesis after a normal ultrasound scan. CONCLUSION: The referral indication and the a priori opinion are the strongest influencing factors with regard to invasive testing and the ultrasound scan has a low impact in those preselected patients. However, ultrasound has an important reassuring aspect in women willing to use ultrasound as assistance in the process of decision making.

Published 21 January 2010 in Ultraschall Med.
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