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Article: Alternative to Routine Amniocentesis Proposed.
- Article from:
- OB GYN News
- Article date:
- August 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 International Medical News Group. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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MAUI, HAWAII -- A three-pronged strategy to screen for fetal abnormalities using two ultrasound examinations and triple-marker serum screening may be safer and less expensive than routinely offering amniocentesis to older women, Dr. Manuel Porto said at a conference on ob.gyn. ultrasound sponsored by the University of California, Irvine.
In a hypothetical group of 10,000 pregnant women aged 35 or older, the triad of tests would be half as expensive as routine amniocentesis (saving almost $5 million), cause half as many deaths in normal fetuses (24 instead of 50), and would miss few cases of serious aneuploidy, he said.
Routine amniocentesis would detect ...