Non-invasive DNA testing – reasons why it is not recommended by hospitals
Non-invasive DNA testing is a genetic testing method that has received widespread attention in recent years. It obtains fetal genetic material through non-invasive methods (such as blood, amniotic fluid, etc.) and can accurately predict the gender of the fetus and the risk of certain genetic diseases. Although non-invasive DNA testing facilitates people\’s family planning to a certain extent, hospitals do not recommend this kind of testing. So, why don’t hospitals recommend non-invasive DNA testing? This article will elaborate on four aspects: technical reliability, genetic variability, technical limitations and unnecessary worries.
Insufficient technical reliability
The technical principle of non-invasive DNA testing is mainly to conduct fetal genetic testing by analyzing trace amounts of fetal genetic material in the blood of pregnant women. However, this detection technology is not very reliable. There are many factors in the blood of pregnant women that may interfere with the detection of fetal genes, such as the maternal genetic condition, infection during pregnancy, malnutrition during pregnancy and other factors, which may affect the accuracy of fetal genes. In addition, because non-invasive DNA testing technology is still very new, the instability of testing equipment and technology will also produce errors, ultimately affecting the accuracy of the testing results.
Genetic variability
Human genes are highly variable, and the genetic variability between different people is huge. Therefore, even within the same ethnic group, there will be a large number of genetic differences. Non-invasive DNA testing technologies are generally evaluated based on reference populations. If the genetic information of pregnant women is significantly different from that of the reference population, the accuracy of the test results will be greatly reduced. Therefore, non-invasive DNA testing may not be suitable if the pregnant woman is from an ethnic group with characteristics that differ from the reference population.
Technical limitations
Although non-invasive DNA testing is more convenient than other genetic testing technologies, it also has technical limitations. For example, non-invasive DNA testing can only predict the risk of genetic diseases on certain autosomal chromosomes, but not other types of genetic diseases. In addition, in the case of a certain genetic disease, non-invasive DNA testing can only predict the risk of the disease but cannot determine the specific disease situation, which will cause unnecessary worry to pregnant women and families.
Unnecessary worries
Although non-invasive DNA testing has some level of accuracy, not all pregnant women need this genetic testing. In addition to the above-mentioned factors such as technical reliability, genetic variability and technical limitations, factors related to medical examination and fertility planning cannot be ignored, such as health status during pregnancy, family genetic history, risk of certain diseases, etc. If there is no relevant disease risk or genetic history, there is no need for pregnant women to undergo non-invasive DNA testing, which will increase unnecessary worries.
Summary
Although non-invasive DNA testing has certain guiding significance in some cases, it is not suitable for all pregnant women. Due to reasons such as insufficient technical reliability, genetic variability, technical limitations and unnecessary concerns, the hospital does not recommend that all pregnant women undergo non-invasive DNA testing. If the genetic history in the family is not particularly serious and the pregnant woman has no other special circumstances, it is recommended to adopt normal prenatal check-up methods to avoid unnecessary speculation and worry about the risks to the fetus.
