Other Tests and Prenatal Procedures

Only some of the procedures talked about here are done. As a mater a fact few of them are done and most are done in centers that specialize in fetal medicine. They might sound a little gory but it is convenient to know about them just in case.

Fetal Blood Test
In order to get a fetal blood test, the doctor removes blood from the umbilical cord. This sample allows the doctor to do a quick diagnosis of the chromosomes when time factor is critical. The doctor can diagnose possible fetal infections, detect evidences of fetal anemia or diagnoses and treat a condition known as non-immune hydropsy, in which the fluids accumulate in the fetus in an abnormal way. The

procedure is done by a maternal fetal health specialist with the help of a sonogram. It is similar to the amniocentesis exam, except for the fact that the doctor directs the needle to the umbilical cord, not in the amniotic liquid. The risk factors are low but they do include infection, rupture of the membranes & fetus loss.

Some fetus’s develop anemia, that can be treated in the uterus with an blood transfusion directly to the umbilical cord. The conditions that can bring about anemia include certain infections like parvovirus, genetic diseases and incompatible blood groups.

Fetal Echocardiogram
A fetal echocardiogram is basically a sonogram focused on the heart of the fetus. The procedure is done by a specialist of fetal maternal health, a pediatric cardiologist, or a radiologist. You may need a fetal eco if you have antecedents of diabetes of a family history of congenital cardiac disease, or if the sonogram indicated abnormalities in the heart. Sometimes the doctor recommends one fetal eco if he or she perceives some structural problem in the ultrasound, because heart abnormalities are many times associated with others.

Doppler Studies
The ultrasound can also be used to do Doppler studies of the fetal blood flow and umbilical cord. These studies are one way of measuring the blood flow to the diverse organs and systems and also inside the placenta. The Doppler study is sometimes done to test the well being of the fetus’s that have intrauterine growth restriction.

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