amniocentesis

Indications

• prenatal diagnosis of genetic disease in fetuses of high-risk pregnancies

Procedure

• transabdominal aspiration of amniotic fluid
• performed under direct ultrasound control with continuous needle tip visualization to avoid bloody taps
• the presence of blood interferes with amniocyte culture
• performed at 10-13 weeks of gestation

Complications

• overall fetal loss < 24 weeks gestation 1.0% vs 0.94% (with vs without amniocentesis)
• fetal loss attibuted to amniocentesis: 0.06%

Notes

• also see:
  • chorionic villus sampling
  • multiplexed maternal plasma DNA sequencing

More general terms

• obstetrics (OB)
• fine needle aspiration (FNA)/biopsy

Additional terms

• chorionic villus sampling
• multiplexed maternal plasma DNA sequencing; cell-free DNA aneuploidy screening (cfDNA)