NT and Amniocentesis

[Writerwannabe83]

Hello everyone,

Can I ask how long it took you to get your NT results back?
Do they give you any indication on the day of whether your reading is satisfactory or not?

Also, with regards to the Amnio, are they only performed if you are classed as being high risk?

If you are relatively low risk but want to know for definite if the baby is healthy or not, would they still do it if you asked or would you have to go Private?

Thanks in advance x

Hi, if you are classed as high risk it's a phone call within a few days if low risk it's a letter that takes about two weeks.
I was told you need to pay to have an amnio if you are not classed as high risk. Though if you are borderline they may do it anyway I think it may depend on which area you are in so worth asking.
I got told my NT measurement on the day but had to wait for my risk catagory as they also use your blood test results to determine this.

If you havnt heard high/low risk by 2weeks pester them to check your notes.

My blood tests were refused by the lab as someone hadnt filled the paperwork correctly. Gggrrrrr
THEN it was filed away and not actioned! Gggrrrrr!!
When i eventually had them redone it was 8days till i got the high risk call and amnio booked :(

hope you get your results soon and you are low risk- limboland is a sucky place to be

I read my NT measurement in my handheld notes (they put a scan report in then and there) and Googled to find out where that fell in terms of risk boundaries. That gave me the confidence to wait for the letter which arrived within ten days or so.

I had my scan relatively late (13+1) so would have needed a swift turnaround for diagnostic tests.

I'm asking I guess because like most people, we'd ideally like to tell people about the pregnancy after the 12 week scan, but me and hubby want to wait for our NT results and then what our Amnio results would be, should we need to have one.

I'm just trying to grasp what timescale that takes as I know we're going to be desperate to tell people if everything is ok

At st Thomas's in London they tell you on the same day as your scan - bloods first then scan then wait for results if blood tests.

If you are low risk then you would have to weigh up the risk of amino/cvs causing misscarriage against your estimated risk ratio.

In first preg we were given a 1:86 of Edwards syndrome but the risk ratio for misscarriage from cvs that we were quoted was 1:50 - therefore higher than the risk of Edwards syndrome.

The misscarriage risk quoted for amnio is about 1:100 so if you are classed as low risk (I.e > 1:150) would you take the misscarriage risk? Only you can decided.

In our case we decided against further testing as our actual scan was very reassuring it was only the bloods that came back as abnormal and Edwards isn't compatible with life anyway - I think it would have been a much much harder decision if it was increased risk for downs.

Anyway I've got a gorgeous nearly two year old now, nothing wrong with him at all. Good luck for your pregnancy.

Thanks Rowena, I have no reason to think I would be high risk for Downs as I'm only 29, don't drink, don't smoke etc but the worry is always there.

Do you know what they look for in the blood tests which then enables them to calculate the risk?

It depends on the hospital. Some places have facilities on site so you can find out within the hour. Most don't. Those that have to send the blood off quote 3-5 days, but when mine did come back positive, it was 2 days later.. I think they hurry it up in those circumstances.

They measure your levels of two hormones for the NT screen - PAPP-A, and bHCG (yes, the pregnancy hormone!) The "average normal" for your weight (and maybe some other things) is considered to be 1.0, so they look at deviations from that to give a risk factor. For instance low PAPP-A and high bHCG indicates an increased risk of Down Syndrome. They then combine that risk with the nuchal fold measurement and give you a combined overall risk for T13/T18 often together, and T21 (Down Syndrome) separately.

For what it's worth (assuming you have the cash.. it's upwards of £400 depending on clinic) there is now a non-invasive alternative to amniocentesis and CVS called Harmony. It's a maternal blood test that can be done from ten weeks and takes up to two weeks for the results. It gives you two results - 1 in 10,000, or 1 in 2 (although it's more like 9/10 I think) so obviously the vast majority of people get the "low risk" response. and if you don't, then baby probably has one of the trisomies. Usually not worth doing if your NT screen comes back good, but if you do screen positive it is a very worthwhile consideration given the risks of invasive testing. It will eventually be rolled out across the NHS but not for a long while yet. It's not a diagnostic like CVS or amnio but it's pretty damned close and MUCH more accurate than NT screening.

I had mine today at 10w1d. I was 1 in 34 last pregnancy and waited it out that time as I could never live with myself if invasive testing lost me my baby, and I would happily pay the money to not have that long stressful wait again. So I went for Harmony, even though I haven't even had an NT screening yet. Just going straight for the most accurate result as early as possible!

Hi Writer

As stated in the post above they check for 3 proteins in the blood as well as the NT and other scan markers with your age and weight.

My pappa protein was very low but everything else fine - no risk factors either and aged 30yrs. Pappa being low can mean a few things - Edwards syndrome being one along with increased risk of preeclampsia, crap placental implantation etc. it meant I got loads if scans, growth scans and I was on aspirin - all of which I actually found very reassuring.

I'm on my second pregnancy now and the risk score was normal so I only get two scans - which is actually more of a worry for me!

I think it depends on your scan results. With DC1 my nuchal fold measurement was so high that I was immediately classed as v high risk regardless of other factors (blood test, age etc) so I was told on the day and had a CVS done 2 days later. With DC2 my reading was fine and I waited for approx. 2 weeks for the full screening results.

In my locality, if you aren't classed as high risk you would need to pay for a private CVS/amnio.

HTH

Hi Writer

The result letter usually takes 2 weeks, but you can call the screening department directly a few days after the scan, and they will tell you the risk factor over the phone. So if all's good, you can start telling people sooner

My own experience, you CAN get more testing or even the amnio on the NHS if you are worried, even if you are low risk. I got a risk of 1 in 760 this time, which is considered low risk but it's so much higher than my risk factors in my previous two pregnancies. I was worried as the NT measurement was perfect which meant the blood markers were a bit "off". I was offered a detailed Fetal Medicine scan with a consultant (which I did); and the possibility to have an amnio that day too if I wanted (I knew straight away I didn't want that because of the m/c risk).

Just to add that there are other options to an Amnio, if it comes back high risk. We ended up with a soft marker at our 20 wk scan and were advised about the Harmony Group. They test the DNA of the baby via your blood for chromosomal disorders. No risk and a good accuracy level. However be warned not cheap! Good look xx

We got told the NT measurement at the scan, it was very normal at 1.7.

We got our risk score over a week later by phone call. My blood test results meant we had an overall high risk of abnormalities. Had the amnio, which showed everything was fine and am having increased scans in case of pre eclampsia/placenta failure.

We got carried away with our NT score and told people that day. With the benefit of hindsight, I'd do exactly the same again. We've never had an "all clear", they've just changed what they're looking for and we would have to tell people at some point!

I wouldn't think it was worth taking the risk of miscarriage if you are classed as low risk when the miscarriage risk is 1% for the amnio and 2% for CVS (according to the screening booklet from the nhs). I would look into the risks associated with invasive tests and make sure you are happy to take those risks.

Personally as they can only narrow the risk down to 1 in 10 I couldn't risk miscarrying a healthy baby for the sake of knowing for certain - also I think the only time we would consider termination is if the condition is incompatible with life (however there are markers for these conditions that can be picked up on the 20 week anomaly scan). This is why we will be refusing this screening test as I just could not have the invasive tests and risk miscarrying therefore would spend the whole pregnancy worrying. I've done this in my 2 previous pregnancies and had 2 healthy babies - also I believe I'm already low risk at 26 anyway. I hope you don't mind me sharing my opinion I'm certainly not judging I just think sometimes the midwives make it seem like you should have these tests and as its your first you might like a different perspective.