Patient's question:
Hello, because of work reasons, I started checking myself at one month and found out I was pregnant. I had an ultrasound, but haven't had any other tests. Now I'm 20 weeks pregnant. I heard that the Down syndrome screening is very important. Can I do the Down syndrome screening at 20 weeks of pregnancy?Doctor's answer:
The best time for screening is between the 15th and 20th weeks of pregnancy. Usually, pregnant women can receive their screening results within one week after blood draw. If the result is high-risk, there is no need to panic, as further tests such as amniocentesis and fetal chromosome examination are required to confirm the diagnosis. Pregnant women with a screening index exceeding the normal range should undergo amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling. Only if the results of amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling are normal can the possibility of Down syndrome be completely ruled out.