Prenatal Genetic Testing Pros And Cons

Genetic testing is a technique which has been introduced in the field of medicine recently. With the help of this test, people can find out whether they are carrying a gene, which when combined with a similar one can cause a type of disease in the person. Apart from this, even pregnant women are getting prenatal genetic testing done to make sure that their unborn baby does not have any major genetic disorder.

Genetic testing is recommended to people who have a family history of a genetic disease, have children who are born with genetic defects, and have gone through more than one miscarriage in the past. Also, pregnant women who are above the age of 35 are recommended to get this test done because it is believed that the children of such women are at a high risk of developing genetic disorders. Though these tests are usually advised to people who have these risk factors, nowadays, most parents are opting for prenatal genetic testing to know whether their child has any abnormalities. This has led to several debates between people who support prenatal genetic testing and those who are against it. Hence, if you are pregnant and are thinking of getting this test done, it is important for you to know about its pros and cons. However, before we get into the pros and cons of this genetic testing, let us take a look what this test actually is about, and how is it done.

Prenatal Genetic Testing
The prenatal genetic testing and screening process can be divided into two different tests. The first test that is conducted on pregnant women is called maternal serum screening. Here, the mother's blood sample is taken and analyzed to know whether the baby has the chance of developing genetic disorders like Down syndrome, neural tube defect and trisomy 18. However, the results of this test can only show whether the baby has high risk or low risk of developing one of these diseases. In other words, the test cannot show accurately whether the baby will definitely have or not have this disease. Hence, if the results show a high risk, pregnant women can go through another test which is called amniocentesis. In this test, the sample of the amniotic fluid is taken from the mother's womb and is tested. This results of this test is said to be 98% accurate. However, the question that most couples ask is what are the pros and cons of genetic screening testing. Let us try to find more information on this topic.

Pros and Cons of Prenatal Genetic Testing
Though genetic testing is considered to be a useful tool by many health practitioners, there are people who are strongly against this because of social, psychological, moral as well as religious reasons. So, let us take a look at the pros and cons of prenatal genetic testing.

Pros

• Sometimes, the unborn baby's problems are something that can be rectified even before the baby is born, i.e. in the womb itself. In such cases, knowing that the baby has some genetic defect can be a boon. If this is not possible, the doctors may get time to be prepared to conduct a surgery as soon as the baby is born, if the problem is a minor one.
• Prenatal genetic testing gives the parents a choice to terminate the pregnancy, if they are not ready to take the responsibility of a child who has genetic abnormalities. Many parents opt for abortion because they do not want their baby to suffer the problems which are faced by a person who is born with genetic defects.
• Sometimes, parents go through this screening test not to abort the fetus, but to be prepared to take care of their child, if he/she is born with abnormalities. Prenatal genetic screening or testing is accompanied with counseling sessions which help the parents to deal with the situation and to take the final decision.

Cons

• People who are against genetic testing say that the anxiety caused by the results are the biggest disadvantage of these tests. Though the unborn baby must be carrying a mutation, it does not mean the baby will surely have the problem. This also raises a question about the accuracy of the test.
• Apart from this, there are people who believe that terminating a baby just because he/she has the chance of developing a genetic disorder is not correct. There are various religious sects which believe that no one else other than God has the right to take the life of a person.
• Another disadvantage of prenatal genetic testing is that it is very expensive. Moreover, not all insurance companies are ready to cover the expenses of these tests.

Pros and Cons of DTC Genetic Testing
As I said earlier, most couples who have the risk factors mentioned above are recommended by their health professional to get the genetic testing done. However, there are many people who opt for this test, even when their doctors do not recommend it. This type of testing is called DTC, i.e. Direct-to-Consumer genetic testing. Nevertheless, there are also certain pros and cons associated with DTC genetic testing. With this, people have a direct access to genetic testing along with the privacy of the results. However, it is said that there is a chance that people may misinterpret the results, causing a lot of anxiety which may also lead to improper decisions. Hence, it is better to get these tests done under the supervision of a health practitioner.

As genetic testing has certain advantages as well as disadvantages, it is important that you weigh both sides carefully before coming to a final conclusion. Discussing this issue with your physician may also make the decision-making process easier for you and your partner. All the best!