Maternal Serum Screening

We're 16 weeks in and it's officially time for Maternal Serum Screening.

Here in BC, labs are pretty convenient - you find one that's accessible, hand in your doctor's request form and Health Card, sit down, close your eyes, and walk out of the lab.

Luckily, yesterday was one of those rare sunny days so walking around downtown was quite a treat. I must be getting used to giving away blood - I can now look directly at the needle in my arm without flinching. LOL. The technician got 2 test tubes worth, stuck my name to it.. and that was that.

So what exactly was it for?

Maternal serum screening is a part of a comprehensive program of prenatal care accessible to all pregnant women in British Columbia. The program serves the entire province, processing 15-20,000 serum samples each year.

The maternal serum screen, offered between 15 and 20 weeks of pregnancy, estimates a woman’s chance of having a baby with Down syndrome, Open spina bifida and Trisomy 18.

Results will be in 3 agonizing weeks, keeping in mind that there are a LOT of false positives for this test. Talk about raising paranoia and worry.