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Article: Second-trimester ultrasound a viable alternative to amniocentesis, expert says. (Testing for Down Syndrome).
- Article from:
- OB GYN News
- Article date:
- November 15, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 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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SACRAMENTO -- A second-trimester ultrasound exam using three parameters is a viable alternative to amniocentesis for evaluating the possibility of Down syndrome, Dr. John C. Hobbins said at an ultrasound update sponsored by the University of California, Davis.
Those data come from an eight-center study that examined 176 fetuses with Down syndrome. The goal of the study was to consider how well each of about 12 different possible features seen on ultrasound predicted that a fetus had Down syndrome.
The three markers found to have the most predictive value were short femur length, the presence of structural anomalies such as a heart defect, and nuchal fold ...