NIPT info please

[danceintime]

Hi I'm 44 and found out last Friday I'm pregnant! I'm 5 weeks today and got an appointment with gp next week
My youngest is 18 and feel totally new to this ! I can't remember anything about pregnancy 😃
I'm currently reading about risks and tests and NIPT
So please tell me everything about this , if you want it does your midwife arrange it or do you have to organise it yourself , do you go to a hospital for it? When's the best week to have it? What does it cost?
Also how do you manage to get time off for appointments if you haven't revealed the pregnancy yet?

[PurdysChocolate]

I contacted a private company after I saw some good reviews for it on here. I had my test at 10 weeks - I wanted to know ASAP because I would terimate if there was a problem. I dont think they can do much earlier than that. They did a scan and a blood test at their own clinic. I had my results pretty quickly, 3 or 4 days later I think. They telephoned and told me I was having a boy and all looked well, then sent paperwork in the post. I never mentioned to my midwife I'd had the test.

[PurdysChocolate]

Oh and it cost £400, for the scan + test. If you have had a previous scan confirming live pregnancy then I think you can just have the test.

[Isittimeforbed]

You have to organise it as it's not yet a standard NHS test, although some hospitals do offer it if you're high risk from the nuchal scan. Various private clinics offer it and prices depend on the one you chose and some NHS hospitals will do it as a private option. The earliest is around 9 weeks depending on the company you go for. If you want time off work you'd have to tell them you were pregnant or else just say GP appointment etc

[danceintime]

Thank you @PurdysChocolate

[Changeymcchangechange]

I had mine done at 10 weeks by a local private obstetrician at her clinic. S an and blood tests on the Saturday, results late on the following Friday.

We also opted to find out the gender, although that's not the reason we had it done. We wanted to know early if there were any issues, due to my age, and to avoid if at all possible amniocentesis. The results meant we could opt out of the NHS testing, and I just told the midwife at my appointments I was having it done and then what the results were. It cost £500.

[danceintime]

@Isittimeforbed a clinic I'm looking at says panorama from 9 weeks which would be great as I've got that week off work .... I'm trying to figure out differences what's panorama and what's harmony.?
I'm having problems retaining info today got a terrible headache too

[danceintime]

@Changeymcchangechange did that include a scan or had you already had an nhs scan at that point?

[Kindnessplease]

I had it on the NHS as I had an initial high risk of down syndrome following the 12 week scan and nuchal tests. It's a bloodiest performed at my local hospital but the bloods were sent to another hospital for screening. I don't mean to scaremonger, but at 44 you are more likely than not to have a high risk so your NHS Trust may then offer it to you following the 12 week SCAN anyway.

However, the advantage of having it earlier is that if you would terminate due to trisomy diagnosis the procedure is (at least) medically a bit simpler earlier on in pregnancy than later.

You need to tell your employer that you are pregnant to have time off due to antenatal matters, otherwise you'll just have to book annual leave.

[danceintime]

@Kindnessplease oh I thought it wasn't on the nhs ..

[Kindnessplease]

It's only just started being rolled out in the NHS during 2018. I'm not sure if all trusts offer it yet. St Peters in Surrey and St Georges in London do offer it. It may be worth asking at your booking appointment whether your trust offers it, however, I expect it would only be offered following the 12 week scan and a result of 'high risk'. Like I said, there is an advantage of having it done privately and earlier. I was almost 16 weeks when I had mine.

[SpikyCactus]

I believe my Harmony test was more like £200. To my knowledge Harmony and Panorama are the same.

[danceintime]

@Kindnessplease yes I totally get that and definitely something to think about .
I'm trying to find out what the difference is between harmony and panorama @SpikyCactus it seems they are the same on website but same place offers the two different ones with different prices and weeks when you can I.e panorama 9 weeks harmony 10 weeks

[Changeymcchangechange]

It was scan and blood test (sorry my typo). I'd already had an early private scan, but they'd only do the scan and blood test together to ensure everything was ok before proceeding. It was a harmony test if that makes a difference, re. Time off work etc. As it was a private clinic, it was open on a Saturday so worth checking if you can go somewhere outside your working hours if that's a concern.

[danceintime]

@Changeymcchangechange thank you for the info 🙏🏻

[Isittimeforbed]

All the tests look for the usual 3 trisomies and should tell you the sex but some look for other anomalies and microdeletions. It's also worth checking how long they take to get results back, as some still send the samples abroad whilst others will get you the results in a few days.

[LittleDoveLove]

I'm waiting for my results at the moment. My hospital offered it. I had to pay £350 but that was cheaper than private clinics I found and I preferred it from hospital for some reason! Glad I've opted for it but it's a nerve wracking experience.

[danceintime]

@Isittimeforbed ah I see thankyou.
@LittleDoveLove Yes I can imagine, sending loads of positive thoughts and hugs. are you high risk because of age? How many weeks are you / and weeks were you when your hospital offered it?

[LittleDoveLove]

Hi @danceintime thank you, I just decided to have it because I wanted to know as early as possible if there was any problems. I'm 11+3 now and had the test at 10+4. I didn't want to wait for 12 week scan results then another while longer for the harmony if it came back high risk on that side of things. I'm 35, I'll be 36 when due. :)

[LittleDoveLove]

In terms of appointments I've said I have a personal hospital appointment when I need to go - I had to have a few as I had to go to EPU first, otherwise it is only a couple of appointments I think, midwife app and 12 week scan, and this blood test if you decide to go for harmony. I had mine in the morning before work though. HR said I don't have to divulge unless I want to. Even if they started to push me I have scan app letters so I could remove the elements about pregnancy to provide letterhead and app time so you could do that :)

[danceintime]

Thankyou @LittleDoveLove 😊

[LittleDoveLove]

No worries @danceintime. Got my results earlier today so quicker than expected, all extreme low risk and we are having a boy :)

[danceintime]

@LittleDoveLove
Yasssssss that's amazing news 😘

[Motherofgingers]

This site gives some good information on the difference between the two tests www.theportlandhospital.com/uploads/maternity/harmony_test.pdf

[LittleDoveLove]

Thank you @danceintime best of luck if you decide to go ahead :) I had been worrying since I found out what the Harmony/NIPT was but mind is at ease, or will be fully at 12 week scan but a huge relief! My cousin has just had a baby in her late 40s and he's fine if that helps reassure you in anyway too :)

[danceintime]

@LittleDoveLove it does a lot thank you !