Prenatal genetic testing

Gooding HC, Boehm K, Thompson RE, Hadley D, Francomano CA, Biesecker BB. Issues surrounding prenatal genetic testing for achondroplasia. Prenatal Diag 2002 22 933-40. 

The physical risks associated with most genetic tests are very small, particularly for those tests that require only a blood sample or buccal smear (a procedure that samples cells from the inside surface of the cheek). The procedures used for prenatal testing carry a small but real risk of losing the pregnancy (miscarriage) because they require a sample of amniotic fluid or tissue from around the fetus. 

MiUaii FA, Curtis A, Mennie M, Holloway S, Boxer M, Faed MJW, et al. Prenatal exclusion testing for Huntington s disease a problem of too much information. J Med Genet 1989 26 83-5. 

Tlie problems of genetic testing ai c psychological or technical in nature. Issues related to insurance, employment discrimination and privacy have received much attention. Additional etliical concerns arise when no effective intervention is available and when prenatal testing is considered for diseases with late-onset or minimal effects. 

From the date that a sample is taken, it may take a few weeks to several months to receive the test results. Results for prenatal testing are usually available more quickly because time is an important consideration in making decisions about a pregnancy. The doctor or genetic counselor who orders a particular test can provide specific information about the cost and time frame associated with that test. 

Brown BI, Brown DH (1989) Branching enzyme activity of cultured amniocytes and chorionic villi prenatal testing for type IV glycogen storage disease. Am J Hum Genet 44 378-381... 

On the basis of maternal hair concentration, the third study (conducted in the Seychelles) did not find any association between prenatal methylmercury exposure and adverse neuro-psychologic effects (Myers et al. 2003). Reasons for the discrepancies are not known but have been suggested to include differences in the child s age at testing, genetic susceptibilities of the populations, patterns of exposure (episodic vs continuous), and coexposure to polychlorinated biphenyls in the Faroes but not Seychelles populations (Rice et al. 2003). 

Prenatal and postnatal development none Genetic toxicology0 Ames test, human lymphocyte chromosomal aberration assay, CHO/HGPRT gene mutation assay, mouse micronucleus assay Carcinogenicity none... 

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