Combitest®
The Combitest® is a prenatal screening test. In other words, it lets you know whether you are at risk of carrying a fetus that may be affected by one of the most common birth defects: trisomy 21, trisomy 18, spina bifida and anencephaly. Furthermore, thanks to high-performance cutting-edge technology, this test is also able to detect other pregnancy-related problems such as preclampsia, for instance.
Quick and simple, the Combitest® is intended for pregnant women of all ages, and can be performed during the first and/or second trimesters of pregnancy.
When the Combitest® is performed between the 11th and 14th week of pregnancy (in the first trimester), it consists of taking a blood sample for analysis and performing a nuchal translucency ultrasound. The reliability of the test results is higher than average with a detection rate greater than 95% and a false positives rate of less than 2%.
In the second trimester (between the 14th and 18th week of pregnancy), the Combitest® requires only that a blood sample be taken for a blood test.
The Combitest® does not pose any danger to the mother or to the fetus, and results are available within 1 to 2 working days after reception of the samples at our laboratories in Montreal.
Understanding your results
It is important to remind you that the Combitest® is a screening test and is not meant to give a definitive diagnosis on the state of the fetus that you are carrying. The test results, sent to your treating physician, will show your level of risk of carrying a fetus affected by one of the most common birth defects.
- If the results of your 1st or 2nd trimester test show a low risk, this means that you have a low risk of carrying a fetus affected by an abnormality. This is great news!
- If the results of your 1th trimester test show an intermediate risk, the results will need to be corroborated with a 2nd trimester Combitest®.
- If the results of your 1st or 2nd trimester test show a high risk, the test will have been performed early enough in the pregnancy to make it possible for you to have an amniocentesis and avoid having to make rushed decisions. At this stage, you can make an appointment to meet with our genetic counselor who will take the time to listen to you and provide you the support you need.
Following a high risk Combitest® result, an amniocentesis, CombiGene® and genetic counselling can be performed at PROCREA Cliniques with no extra fee.
Who should get the Combitest®?
The Combitest® is intended for all pregnant women in their 1st trimester of pregnancy as well as for a large number of women in their 2nd trimester of pregnancy, specifically:
- Pregnant women who have come too late to undergo the1st trimester Combitest®;
- Women whose 1st trimester Combitest® results indicate very low risk but who are still worried and wish to be reassured by second trimester test results;
- Women whose 1st trimester Combitest® results show an intermediate risk;
- Women who have undergone prenatal screening somewhere else and wish to get a second opinion or results from a 2nd trimester test before undergoing amniocentesis;
