DNA Blood Test Can Cut Invasive Testing for Down's Syndrome by 98 Percent, Study Suggests

The blood test could mean that 98% of invasive procedures could be avoided, say the authors. The test uses the latest DNA technology to analyse genetic components in the mother's blood that indicate whether the fetus has Down's.

Women in high risk groups tend to undergo a combination of scans and hormone level tests in order to determine if they need to have an invasive test such as amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling.

The results show that the test is highly accurate in detecting Down's syndrome in unborn babies and does not give false negative results.

In this way the number of women requiring invasive procedures can be reduced.

Original Paper:

R. W. K. Chiu, R. Akolekar, Y. W. L. Zheng, T. Y. Leung, H. Sun, K. C. A. Chan, F. M. F. Lun, A. T. J. I. Go, E. T. Lau, W. W. K. To, W. C. Leung, R. Y. K. Tang, S. K. C. Au-Yeung, H. Lam, Y. Y. Kung, X. Zhang, J. M. G. van Vugt, R. Minekawa, M. H. Y. Tang, J. Wang, C. B. M. Oudejans, T. K. Lau, K. H. Nicolaides, Y. M. D. Lo. Non-invasive prenatal assessment of trisomy 21 by multiplexed maternal plasma DNA sequencing: large scale validity study. BMJ, 2011; 342 (jan11 1): c7401 DOI: 10.1136/bmj.c7401

Source:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110111184135.htm