Why is Amniocentesis Performed?
Amniocentesis is a diagnostic test. It is mainly performed to know about the health of the baby. The procedure helps to detect:
- Karyotypic Abnormalities: If the chromosomes of the feotus are normal or not. That means if the baby is with any genetic disease such as cystic fibrosis, down syndrome, sickle cell disease, heart defects or not.
- Congenital Abnormalities: If the baby has any birth defect such as spina bifida, anencephaly or not.
- Organ Development: At the later period of pregnancy, if the lung of the foetus is well developed or not able to breathe properly.
- Infection: If the foetus has any infection or not. Any disease such as Rh Anaemia of the baby can also be detected through this test.
- Gender: The sex of the baby can be identified through this procedure.
What is Amniocentesis?
Amniocentesis is a technique used to gather amniotic fluid from the uterus during pregnancy to diagnose genetic disorders and fetal abnormalities. It is a prenatal diagnostic procedure which collects the foetal cell from the amniotic fluid to examine and identify chromosomal abnormalities or any disease of the baby. In this article, we will look into the Amniocentesis meaning, the reasons to performing Amniocentesis and its procedure, along with the risk associated with Amniocentesis.
Table of Content
- What is Amniocentesis?
- Amniocentesis Diagram
- Why is Amniocentesis Performed?
- Who Needs Amniocentesis?
- How is Amniocentesis Performed?
- What is the Risk of Amniocentesis?
- Care After Amniocentesis
- Why is Amniocentesis Banned in India?