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Pregnancy & children
Antenatal Screening
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Making decisions about screening :
Thinking about screening and what it is for
Special reasons for wanting screening
Reasons for not having some or all screening
Discussing screening choices with your partner
Attitudes to disability and termination
Information for making decisions
Experiences of screening :
Nuchal scan (low risk results)
Nuchal scan (being told something may be wrong)
Early dating scans
18-20 week scan (low risk results)
18-20 week scan (being told something may be wrong)
Blood test screening
Understanding screening test results
Having further tests and getting results :
Deciding whether to have further diagnostic tests
Having further tests and waiting for results
Getting diagnostic test results
Thoughts, discussions and info after diagnosis
Deciding to continue with the pregnancy :
Making the decision to continue with the pregnancy
What the rest of pregnancy and birth was like
Feelings about screening looking back
Deciding to end the pregnancy :
Making the decision to end the pregnancy
The experience of ending a pregnancy
Feelings and reflections afterwards
Views on screening & feelings in later pregnancies
When screening does not detect a condition :
Learning after birth that the baby has a condition
How it has affected parents' views about screening
Living with disabilities or a chronic condition :
Living with a child with a long term condition
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Antenatal Screening
Subject index
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Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN34
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She trusted her doctor's advice that she should have screening.
Routine screening experiences. Healthy baby born 2002.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Baby's condition detected after birth
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Interview AN12
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Having blood tests and other kinds of screening is treated as routine.
Second child born with Down's syndrome after low risk nuchal scan results, and no problems detected at 20-week scan. Home birth. Daughter now aged two.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Ending an affected pregnancy
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Interview AN18
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She decided not to have the triple test in her first pregnancy because she thought she was too young to be at risk of Down's syndrome.
Spina bifida detected at 20-week scan in first pregnancy - some family history of the condition. Couple decided to end the pregnancy. Now pregnant again.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN08
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She had not had much information about blood tests, but trusted that staff were acting in her interests.
Normal first pregnancy, routine screening experiences. Private care throughout pregnancy.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN33
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They explained why they had the anomaly scan but not blood tests and why they felt differently about them.
Couple declined all early screening in two pregnancies, because they would not consider terminating an affected pregnancy, but did have 20-week anomaly scans. Currently pregnant.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN05
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She thought about not having screening, but her husband was in favour of having every test available, for reassurance.
4 months pregnant. Normal screening results. One scan in early pregnancy, no other scans planned. Alphafetoprotein results not yet received.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN34
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Having missed the deadline for a combined nuchal scan and blood test she was offered CVS (Chorionic Villus Sampling) but refused.
Routine screening experiences. Healthy baby born 2002.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN05
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She did not want to worry about something being wrong unless it actually happened.
4 months pregnant. Normal screening results. One scan in early pregnancy, no other scans planned. Alphafetoprotein results not yet received.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN11
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She and her partner had different views about what they would do with the results of screening tests, so they postponed further discussion.
Normal first pregnancy; screening carried out in US, before return to UK when 6 months pregnant. Declined amniocentesis (offered as standard). Compares US and UK.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN05
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Even though her background meant she was well informed about healthcare, she would have liked more face-to-face discussion of screening.
4 months pregnant. Normal screening results. One scan in early pregnancy, no other scans planned. Alphafetoprotein results not yet received.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN14
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It was not always clear what different blood tests were for, but it matters less if the results are normal.
Seven and a half months pregnant with twins conceived by IVF. Has had scans throughout pregnancy; nuchal translucency scan had to be repeated because of the babies' position.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN27
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For first-time mothers it is difficult to know what questions to ask and what information you need.
Healthy pregnancy, routine screening. Some blood test results came back abnormal. Levels of information and choice have been a concern.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN05
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Nuchal scans were not available on the NHS locally and she did not feel the need to have one privately.
4 months pregnant. Normal screening results. One scan in early pregnancy, no other scans planned. Alphafetoprotein results not yet received.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN21
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She had the combined nuchal scan and blood test privately, but found out only just in time that it was available.
Normal first pregnancy; some early scanning after bleeding in first trimester. Screening includes nuchal translucency scan and blood testing.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Ending an affected pregnancy
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Interview AN32
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She had no idea the 12-week dating scan could detect problems, and felt completely unprepared for the possibility of bad news in her first pregnancy.
Problems detected in first pregnancy at routine 12 week dating scan - confirmed as Edward's syndrome by CVS. Couple decided to end the pregnancy. Now pregnant again.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Ending an affected pregnancy
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Interview AN16
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Her views about screening have changed. She has heard that the baby's anencephaly in her first pregnancy could have been detected earlier, at 12 weeks
Anencephaly detected at 20-week scan in first pregnancy. Considered continuing the pregnancy but eventually decided to induce labour early. Second pregnancy miscarried. Now pregnant again.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN27
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She was still waiting for some blood test results to come back months later, including for sickle cell disease.
Healthy pregnancy, routine screening. Some blood test results came back abnormal. Levels of information and choice have been a concern.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN19
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She was well informed about the availability of the combined nuchal scan and blood test, but her blood sample was damaged in the post.
Normal first pregnancy, routine screening experiences, including combined nuchal scan and blood test.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Ending an affected pregnancy
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Interview AN35
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She had the combined blood test and nuchal scan in her first pregnancy. It was the blood test results that alerted them to their baby's condition (Tur
Combined nuchal scan/blood test suggested high risk; early results ruled out trisomies but subsequently diagnosed a severe form of Turner's syndrome. Couple decided to end the pregnancy; now pregnant again.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Ending an affected pregnancy
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Interview AN16
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She refused the triple test in her first pregnancy because she did not realise it was for spina bifida as well as Down's syndrome.
Anencephaly detected at 20-week scan in first pregnancy. Considered continuing the pregnancy but eventually decided to induce labour early. Second pregnancy miscarried. Now pregnant again.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN25
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She was informed about the triple test, but surprised the midwife would visit her if the results showed an increased chance that something was wrong.
Two normal pregnancies. Nuchal scan not available locally, so had blood screening. Unable to have 20-week scan in first pregnancy because of staff shortages.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Ending an affected pregnancy
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Interview AN32
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They decided against blood tests in the current pregnancy and relied only on scans. This time they felt better informed to make a real choice.
Problems detected in first pregnancy at routine 12 week dating scan - confirmed as Edward's syndrome by CVS. Couple decided to end the pregnancy. Now pregnant again.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Ending an affected pregnancy
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Interview AN18
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She relied only on scans in her next pregnancy, and felt the triple test might make her anxious unnecessarily.
Spina bifida detected at 20-week scan in first pregnancy - some family history of the condition. Couple decided to end the pregnancy. Now pregnant again.
Pregnancy & children
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Antenatal Screening
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Normal results or declining screening
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Interview AN25
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Her blood test results were reassuringly low risk, but she knew this could not guarantee Down's syndrome was not present.
Two normal pregnancies. Nuchal scan not available locally, so had blood screening. Unable to have 20-week scan in first pregnancy because of staff shortages.
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