Prenatal Diagnosis — Advances Bring New Challenges

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Abstract
During the past two decades, the diagnosis of genetic diseases in the fetus has become an integral part of obstetrical care. Most commonly, cells obtained by amniocentesis after a 16-week gestation are being used for testing. The safety, efficacy, and accuracy of midtrimester amniocentesis have been studied collaboratively in the United States and in other countries. In the U.S. study, the rates of total fetal losses in the amniocentesis group (3.5 percent) and in nonrandomized controls (3.2 percent) were not significantly different.1 These results led to the estimate that the risk of fetal loss due to amniocentesis does not exceed . . .