Test Detects Down Syndrome Early

Researchers say that by using a test called first-trimester combined screening, they can now detect Down syndrome earlier in pregnancy than ever before.The combined screen includes an ultrasound test called a nuchal translucency test, plus tests that look for two proteins in maternal blood."This test is a big step forward for pregnant women because, on its own, it picks up 87 percent of cases of Down syndrome, and does so extremely early in pregnancy -- 11 or 12 weeks -- which is sufficiently early that women can find out important pregnancy information before being visibly pregnant,” said Dr. Fergal Malone, chairman of the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, Ireland.Malone was lead author of the study, which compared the new test to standard second-trimester screening, called quadruple screening. His team published their findings in the Nov. 10 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

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