NEW YORK, Jan. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- NTD Labs, a specialty hi-tech, bio-medical laboratory dedicated to pre-natal screening for birth defects, announces its extraordinary, new, non-invasive, Ultra-Screen(R) Instant Risk Assessment (IRA(SM)) at-home blood test, which paves the way for the earliest possible on the spot, risk assessment of the most common chromosomal abnormalities with 91% accuracy.
This new program includes an at-home blood test, which can be done by the patient in the privacy of her home. The patient uses an in-home blood specimen collection system and sends her dried blood card directly to NTD Laboratories as early as nine weeks of pregnancy. By the time the patient sees her doctor for her eleven-week ultrasound, the blood results have been entered into the NTD Labs database, and the patient can receive instant information and risk analysis. With 91% accuracy, this makes Ultra-Screen IRA the earliest, most stress-free test available. Other versions of the test require the patient to give a blood sample at the time of the 11-week ultrasound examination, meaning the patient must wait days after the ultrasound to know her baby’s Down syndrome and trisomy 18 status. Ultra-Screen Instant Risk Assessment Program means early reassurance for millions of pregnant woman.
The science behind this program is well researched and quite specific. The blood specimen is analyzed for two chemicals called free Beta human chorionic gonadotropin (free Beta(TM)), and pregnancy associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A). During the ultrasound, which demonstrates a fetal heartbeat and determines gestational age, the obstetrician measures the amount of fluid accumulation behind the neck of the baby, called nuchal translucency (NT) and crown rump length (CRL). The physician inputs the results of the ultrasound into the NTD Labs database and the results of the ultrasound are combined with the results of the blood test to determine a specific risk percentage for Down syndrome and trisomy 18. A report is issued while the patient is in the doctor’s office enabling same day genetic counseling.
“The extraordinary value of this program is two-fold, " says Dr. James Macri, NTD President and Lab Director, “95% of women who use Ultra-Screen in the first trimester will receive invaluable reassurance that their pregnancy is progressing normally, and for those women identified as being at increased risk, this opens the door to review further diagnostic options with their physicians at a very early stage. This is truly empowering to pregnant women.”
Maternal fetal medicine specialist, Dr. Dan O’Keefe, of Arizona’s Phoenix Perinatal Associates, said, “The introduction of the Instant Risk Assessment at home program (IRA), is one of the best technology breakthroughs we have seen in years. Not only does it give us the ability to detect chromosomal abnormalities at the earliest possible moment, but it also gives most of our patients’ instant relief to know their babies are normal with the smallest risk factor possible. The doctors love it. The patients love it. You can’t imagine the relief we see on the faces of both mother and fathers-to-be when we give them the good news results on the spot.
“Since October, we have used IRA on more than 400 patients. Pregnant women are amazed that all they have to do is prick their finger at home, send in the blood sample to NTD Labs and then we can give them instant results after we take their Ultrasound in our office. Patients can even watch us input their Ultrasound numbers into the NTD database and secure their findings immediately. Before IRA, patients had to wait a week to find out if their babies were at great risk for Down syndrome. That was an extremely high- anxiety time for both mother and father. Now patients walk out of my office focusing on a happy, healthy pregnancy filled with the proper nutrition and fitness. IRA helps put everything in proper perspective.”
This Ultra-Screen Instant Risk Assessment Program is only available through NTD Labs. The company is making the test available to patients and physicians nationwide.
About NTD Labs
NTD Laboratories, based in Huntington Station, New York, is a specialty laboratory that focuses on prenatal screening for birth defects. It was founded in 1984 by its president and lab director, Dr. James N. Macri. NTD Laboratories pioneered first trimester screening for Down syndrome and Trisomy 18 in 1995. NTD Laboratories provides services to universities, medical centers, hospitals, other laboratories, and obstetricians throughout the United States and internationally. NTD Laboratories has an extensive research division and its findings have been published in many peer-reviewed medical journals. Further information can be found at http://www.ntdlabs.com/.
Digital images are available at http://www.hwhpr.com/HWH_downloads/irakit.zip.
NTD Laboratories
CONTACT: Lois Whitman, +1-212-355-5049 ext. 105, loisw@hwhpr.com orWendi Tush, +1-212-355-5049 ext. 103, wtush@hwhpr.com, both of HWH PublicRelations, for NTD Laboratories
Web site: http://www.ntdlabs.com/