Implementing non-invasive prenatal testing into publicly funded antenatal screening services for Down syndrome and other conditions in Aotearoa New Zealand.
BMC Pregnancy Childbirth
; 17(1): 344, 2017 Oct 04.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-28978305
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) is a relatively new screen for congenital conditions - specifically, common fetal aneuploidies including Down Syndrome. The test is based on isolating freely circulating fragments of fetal-placental DNA that is present in the mother's blood. NIPT has a superior clinical performance compared to current screening, and has been available privately in Aotearoa New Zealand for the last 4 years. MAIN ISSUE The proposed implementation of NIPT as a publicly funded service may widen the inequity in access to optional antenatal screening that already exists in this country.CONCLUSION:
This paper discusses precautions that can be taken at the health system, organisation, and personnel levels to ensure that access to NIPT is equitable, that services are culturally responsive, and women's informed choice is promoted and protected. The adoption of NIPT into publicly funded services is an example of how genetic screening is becoming mainstreamed into health services; as such our approach may also have relevance around the introduction of other genetic and genomic screening initiatives.Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Prenatal Diagnosis
/
Genetic Testing
/
Down Syndrome
/
Health Plan Implementation
/
Health Services Accessibility
Type of study:
Diagnostic_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Screening_studies
/
Sysrev_observational_studies
Aspects:
Determinantes_sociais_saude
/
Implementation_research
Limits:
Female
/
Humans
/
Pregnancy
Country/Region as subject:
Oceania
Language:
En
Journal:
BMC Pregnancy Childbirth
Journal subject:
OBSTETRICIA
Year:
2017
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Nueva Zelanda