Down Syndrome - risks and chances?

Posts: 826
9/8/12 9:54 P

At church I work with the sweetest little downs girl. She can be a handful, but at the same time just a neat little girl. She just turned 12 this last week! I was asked plenty of times if I wanted an amnio. I declined every time, only because the outcome wouldn't change my mind no matter what. I am excited to meet my little guy- 8 more weeks!

Posts: 91
8/15/12 9:01 A

Angelover, I think that is so amazing that you are so at peace with what may come for you. I know that I will get there and each day brings me closer to trusting that this is what was chosen for me. Thank you so much for sharing.

Posts: 29
8/14/12 6:46 P

Hugs Stacey!!!

I am high risk for having a child with Down Syndrome if we are lucky enough to not lose the baby before birth.. But.. I am OK with this idea. I feel like I've known for ages that I will have a baby with DS.. so it won't surprise me at all. I have a psychic feeling that I will have a Down's baby girl and then I found the risk level is very high in your 40s.. For me at 44 when I deliver, it's 1:41.. Wow..

Here is the page that shows risk level by maternal age at delivery: http://pregnancy.about.com/cs/down
syndrome/l/bldownssyn.htm

Posts: 805
7/26/12 11:02 A

Thank you Staceyski. :)

Posts: 91
7/24/12 8:41 A

You are so very welcome. I was hoping to be able to help someone not have to deal with the emotions that I am. Enjoy your pregnancy! Embrace every moment! I'll be praying for you and for a healthy baby.

Posts: 805
7/23/12 9:19 P

I'm 36, just found out I am pregnant and will almost be 37 by the time baby is born. I tossed between finding out but have decided not to do any testing as it will not change my mind and I'd like to enjoy the pregnancy then be scared the whole way through. I value the input you moms have put on here and am thankful for all the knowledge you have shared.

Posts: 91
7/19/12 2:38 P

Just a little advice.... if the testing will not change your mind about your baby regardless of the outcome then I say don't do any! It's your choice. I am saying this because we are undergoing tons of testing now after further blood work and ultrasounds determined my baby has down syndrome. I am 23 weeks along and honestly I feel great! However, mentally, I am a mess. All I do is worry about the unknown of what's to come. I have to do ultrasounds every 4 weeks which is great to see my precious baby boy but also makes me nervous on whether or not they are going to find more issues. So far, so good - healthy otherwise. So I hope this helps those of you that are contemplating the DS testing. I don't know if it's better to know now or just to know when he/she is born. But I do know that my results have caused me to much heartache and stress that I wouldn't do it again. Hope this helps someone out there! Hugs!

Posts: 13
6/19/12 11:38 A

I am 12.3 weeks pregnant with my 2nd child, and I am going to be 35 at the end of next month. I opted to have the Nuchal Transluscent test done, which is a combination of U/S and blood test. My odds were 1 in 4,000. So I opted not to have anymore testing done. I have a 6 and a half year old with special needs, so I was really concerned with this baby, but am feeling much better about it. My kids are going to have a 6 year age gap, and their birthdays will be in the same month.

Posts: 1
6/9/12 3:23 A

I am a 2 nd time mom at 38 was very worried about downs as I has 2 soft markers I did an amino and lots of research if you go to a good highly experienced dr ur odds get very low for miscarriage my dr also put me on antibiotics one day before amnio and 4 days after, just after the procedure I was give a uterine relaxant which continued for a week, I did bed rest for 3 days and stayed at home for a week total then back to normal, happy to say had no problems with baby or amnio new research says using antibiotics before amnio drops risk to 0.16 which is way lower than conventional 1 % hope this helps anyone who is thinking about amnio

Posts: 17
6/5/12 11:39 A

I am thinking of CVS and if not will probably get an amnio. I am quite scared about the miscarriage risk as I was that 1% with my surrogate pregnancy...

Posts: 5
5/31/12 2:11 P

Amnios are riskier then doing nothing, but really not generally as risky as people think. If you have a qualified doctor preform your amnio, the risk of miscarriage is literally as low as 1%. Most doctors or special testing centers will provide you, upon request, thier personal percentage outcome of amnios they have preformed. It sounds like an invasive, horrible test..but really, it's not at all bad. It also provides definite answers to those potentially nagging questions that plauge us as "older" mothers. All though an amnio is certianly not for everyone, the decision should be made with an accurate understanding of how low the risks really are.

Posts: 91
5/22/12 8:13 A

Yay, congrats on the girl! I can't wait to find out what we're having. Continuing to pray for you as we journey through the same things. Try not to worry about it and focus on a healthy pregnancy. I say that and every once in awhile I start to think about the what if's and I begin to cry. But most days I'm ok. Been keeping busy with my other little ones so that helps. Hoping all continues to go well for you!

Posts: 742
5/21/12 10:35 P

Thank you for your prayers STACEYSKI! I really appreciate the support.

Going in today was pretty unnerving. We were unable to get all the tests done today because some things wasn't large enough to measure like the heart, spinal cord and another neural part that I can't remember the name to. We decided against the amnio today because we wanted to get those other measurements before making a final decision (also, once I heard about the amnio procedure not including some kind of sedation, my ridiculous fear of needles kicked in...). I think my DH is now fully against the amnio due to the MC risks associated with it.

On a happy note, we found out what the gender was...we're having a girl :)

Posts: 91
5/21/12 8:02 A

Praying for you NTKENDALLDIAZ - hoping that you get good results from your ultrasound today! And ofcourse, I know exactly how you are feeling. I am waiting here in limbo for my next ultrasound which isn't until late June. I do get to see my doctor this week though so at least I'll be able to discuss things more with him one and one. Keep us updated. I bet you're excited to see your baby today though! I know I would be! Hugs!

Posts: 475
5/20/12 10:59 P

Good luck. Remember, you have a great chance all is well.

Finding has it's risks, but I didn't want to wait. I bet that was selfish, but I prefered working on expectation management.

Posts: 742
5/20/12 10:16 P

I'm going in tomorrow for my DS ultrasound. I'm 35, this is my first child and conceived via IVF. I did the 2 blood tests and my chances were 1/88. I'm scared beyond belief for the results. I'm more scared of the docs telling me everything is good, then finding out after birth that the child has DS.

Reading your posts have conditioned me to be prepared for anything. Thank you for sharing your stories.

Posts: 197
5/9/12 3:50 P

I had my son at 39 & he was at a high risk for having Downs.In addition,I had a low protein level in my amniotic fluid as well as low fluid level.My husband is a special education teacher and I have a relative (by previous marriage) that has Downs, she's now 32. The thought of terminating the pregancy never entered our minds BUT we are well aware of the reality of the situation and wanted to mentally and financialy prepare for what may lie ahead of us if indeed the baby was Downs.Would I return to work, what, if any special childcare would this precious gift need?In regards to the amnio, it was scary,I had to weigh all the options.My Dr. warned of the increased chance for miscarriage but could not tell me what my chances of miscarrying were to begin with. I had never had a miscarriage so I decided it must be low. I went through with it. It didnt hurt and I stayed on bed rest for the next 2 days. I had a slight smudge of blood that totally freaked me out. I called the Dr. and followed their advice (bed rest) and it was nothing. Everything was fine. We have a non-Downs baby boy.
Whatever you decide......will be the right decision.
Downs babies are the most beautiful gifts from God. I have several friends who have been chosen to be parents to these angels.

Posts: 91
5/9/12 8:23 A

Thank you for all of the advice and kind words. They really do help. I had a really rough day yesterday with this news. My husband keeps saying that I need to focus on the positive that it's a 79/80 chance that we DON'T have a baby with DS. Either way, we have decided to not do an amnio because of the risks to the baby and me. At this point I am just waiting until I am 16 weeks for the more in depth ultrasound. My doctor was so kind to give us his cell phone number and my husband called him last night and got some reassurance from him. He is not worried, I am however. Trying to get past this worry and just focus on a stress free pregnancy. Hopefully I'll get there. Still just scared at this point. Keep posting for me ladies, reading all of these messages really does help! Hugs!

Posts: 475
5/8/12 8:30 P

I actually had a higher risk than you for downs (1/33). However, that risk was higher than the risk for amnio. We did get the amnio and yes, the baby had downs. It is a tough decision, but I didn't want to wait 9 months and wanted the option to terminate if needed. It is terrifying, but there are 78/79 chances there is Downs.

Good luck on your choice.

BabyPoints: 1350
Posts: 33
5/8/12 7:46 P

Amnions are risky the chance of the baby getting an infection, risk of miscarriage ect. But you have to decide if the knowledge is worth the risk. I have two children with no issues and my last one I was an older mom (35), they did the quad screen and blood work everything came back great my odds I was told were 1 in thousands. My Dr and ultrasound specialist both recommended against the amino since my odds were great and the baby measured exactly where he should be. six hours after I gave birth they came in to tell us he had downs. My best friend pregnant at the same time as me was told she had soft markers for downs so I didn't tell her about my son till she had hers. Her baby is perfect in every way. Yes an amino gives you that reassurance and if you decide to get one do it now don't wait for 16 weeks it takes several weeks to get the results back anyway. by then you would be 20 + weeks and half way through. I am pregnant now with my 4th baby and we had the triple check and the quad screen but again chose to not do the the amino I am not going to terminate regardless. I know its hard and I know how scared you must be but take it from me Drs don't know everything and frankly I would not trade my beautiful 1 year old with downs for anyones typical 1 year old, frankly my little one is just perfect. I have a friend who is a Dr and she had her son at 48 years old her odds were one in five, her son is perfect. You just never know. but if you choose the amino do it now. It is heartbreaking to go through that, I am equally as stressed.

Posts: 91
5/8/12 2:45 P

I am 13 weeks pregnant with my 3rd child and I'm 38 years old. I just got a call from the Doctor saying that after my last blood work my likely hood of having a baby with down syndrome is 1/79. I knew my risks were higher due to my age but now I am freaking out. Both of my other baby girls were healthy and no issues. Has anyone gotten these high results and what are your thoughts? Also what are your opinions on amnios? My husband and I area totally against them due to the risks. My next step according to the doctor is a more in depth ultrasound at 16 weeks. Please help, I am freaking out!!!!