Down Syndrome on ultrasound

Suspicions regarding abnormalities in fetal development lead to a large number of studies and numerous analyzes. Especially it concerns the detection of Down syndrome on ultrasound. It is necessary to pass it not to everyone, but only to those who have a predisposition to give birth to a "sunny child".

Risks of Down's Syndrome

A group of women who can give birth to a baby with this pathology include:

• pregnant women, whose age has passed beyond the mark of 35 years or under 18 years;
• The fetus with Down syndrome often occurs in those who have committed incest;
• women who are irresponsible to planning pregnancy and its bearing, themselves harm themselves or the child.

Special attention of the doctor-genetics is attracted to patients who had cases of such or similar disease along the lines of their kind or husband. These pregnant women need to go through all the existing methods of diagnosing Down syndrome. It is necessary to take into account the fact that the examination should be complex, so that it was possible to establish the disease of the fetus as precisely as possible.

Definition of Down's syndrome by ultrasound

The use of this method is relevant only in the period from the 11th to the 14th week of gestation. This is due to the fact that in the future all the signs will no longer be so clear and informative.

Markers of Down syndrome on ultrasound are:

• the collar space (TVP), namely the fold on the neck of the fetus, - should not be wider than 3 mm;
• the bones of the nose are somewhat shorter than in a healthy child.

It should be understood that the presence of such signs of Down syndrome in pregnancy on ultrasound is not at all a confirmation of the disease. The investigated sizes are estimated in millimeters, and their accuracy can be affected by the motor activity of the fetus or its position in the uterus. That is why the markers of this deviation should be determined by an experienced and highly qualified specialist and be confirmed by a genetic analysis for Down syndrome .

After receiving the results of a screening test of Down syndrome, a pregnant woman is offered to undergo additional Studies that confirm or refute the disease of the fetus. Doing them better in clinics and medical centers that have the necessary equipment and highly qualified specialists. After all, their work will depend on the veracity of the results of screening for Down's syndrome and, as a consequence, the decision to leave the child or to have an abortion.

Do not panic immediately if the gynecologist recommended that you have an ultrasound scan for Down syndrome detection for you. This does not mean that something is wrong with your child. This study is included in the list of recommended, not mandatory tests.