Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post brought to you by Harmony Prenatal Testing.
Combining my experience as a NICU nurse with my journey into motherhood was an interesting thing. Having taken care of the sickest of sick babies I was all the more 
terrified that some twist of fate would add me to the ranks of the soldiers that I so admired. You can add that fear to months and months of nausea and vomiting to the point where I had all but given up on eating, let alone taking my prenatal vitamins. While my fears may not have been super rational (picture a frazzled preggo lady just attempting to keep down her water and crackers while feeling hungover despite the fact that she hasn’t had a glass of wine in months), I was grateful for the non-invasive prenatal testing that I obtained.
While my testing results were negative, I knew in my heart that no matter what the results, they would have allowed me to be better prepared for the baby that I carried. The logical side of my brain knew that if anything were wrong with my child I would want to be as prepared as possible. I would want to give birth at a hospital that specialized in the care my child would need. Did you know that not all hospitals have pediatric surgeons, geneticists, or many other specialties? Not only that, but not all hospitals have NICUs that are designated as level three NICUs, which provide the highest quality of care (locally we have multiple level three NICUs including East Jefferson Hospital, Ochsner, Children’s Hospital, and Touro is opening one very soon).
I realize that prenatal testing can be somewhat of a touchy and personal topic, and I recognize that pursuing genetic testing is a very personal decision. However, I believe that as science changes and evolves there is space to engage in a dialogue about these issues. I have heard women say many times things such as, “Why would I do the testing if I would love and keep my baby no matter what?” or “Why would I endanger my child’s life if I would keep and love them anyway?” While I admit that I have pondered those thoughts as well, I was personally excited when I heard about a new kind of prenatal testing that is available earlier than other tests and is also non-invasive. In other words, with a non-invasive test like the Harmony Prenatal Test, you can find out sooner with no risk to your unborn baby.
Here’s some important information about the Harmony Prenatal Test:
Simple: This test is done with a blood sample.
Safe: Other than the blood draw that you provide for analysis, nothing else is needed to complete this test.
Effective: The Harmony Prenatal Test is greater than 99% accurate for assessing the risk of Down syndrome, or fetal trisomy 21, and it has a false positive rate less than 0.1%, meaning the likelihood that you will be incorrectly told your baby has a trisomy risk is very low. The test evaluates the risk for trisomy 21, 18, and 13, and it also offers an optional analysis of the X and Y sex chromosomes. You should check with your health care provider and have appropriate counseling before deciding if you would like the optional X,Y analysis. The Harmony test does not assess risk for ALL chromosomal abnormalities. You can, however, also find out earlier if you are carrying a boy or a girl, which is a fun bonus. I would have loved shopping for blue clothes even earlier! The Harmony test is offered to all singleton pregnancies as well as all in vitro fertilization (IVF) singleton pregnancies, including those with egg donors. Samples from pregnant women with twins naturally conceived, or those conceived using the patient’s own egg, are also accepted.
For more information about this test, check out Harmony test patient brochure, video and pregnancy guide.
Author’s Note: This is a sponsored post. All facts have been provided by Harmony. All opinions are 100% my own, and please know that we respect your opinions on this topic as well. To make a decision on your own medical situation, please contact your doctor.
I had some testing to a certain point. I have spina bifida occulta & original testing did show spinal problems for my 2nd child. After ascertain point I put it in God’s hands but testing like this can be so beneficial!
I opted to have prenatal testing done with both pregnancies. The first time I chose it because I figured that I would want to know if we needed to have additional medical care or make any arrangements for the baby’s arrival. I then had a missed miscarriage, which is often though not always related to genetics, so we definitely wanted prenatal testing with my third pregnancy. For us it was all about “knowledge is power” and preparation.
Very interesting. While we had many indepth ultrasounds with the boys, we didn’t have any bloodwork done because the tests available at the time (2007) were generally not very accurate with multiples. (And for some reason, we weren’t even offered an NT scan.) But if this is truly accurate with multiples, I would be all over it. Knowledge is power!
Seems way more accurate than the Blood test/Ultrasounds that are traditionally done if you elect to get screened. Definitely will be discussing this with my Dr for #3 when the time comes!
I think it is so great that a test that is noninvasive and 99% accurate is available! Now, trying to convince hospitals, doctors, and insurance companies that this should be the preliminary genetic screening option instead of a secondary or terciary option is another story. So many parents receive a false positive and require more invasive testing to find out what exactly is going on with the baby, when a test like this could get to the root of many questions from the get-go. Thank you for the information!
great post! I also had prenatal testing done. Good to be prepared:)
I actually never thought about prenatal testing when I was pregnant with my daughter. I was so busy being sick every day all day when I was pregnant that it was never on my radar. If we have a second child, I will definitely look in to it and see what the options are.
This is very interesting, and odd that it is a touchy subject as there is no wrong answer. From my understanding when I was pregnant, there were only ways to indicate that their MIGHT be an issue, and a lot of people would get “false positives”. As a worrier by nature, that was enough for me to say no thank you. I did get the 20w ultrasound and would hope that any indicators of an issue would be picked up there (and they did find something minor). But this Harmony testing seems different, and something I would’ve certainly considered had it been available when I was pregnant. 🙂
I opted out of testing with both of mine, like Myndee, I read there were too many false positives and so I decided to just wait it out! Since I’m not having a 3rd, I haven’t looked into anything new! This looks interesting and will pass it on to friends having babies!
Doesn’t Lakeside also have a level 3 NICU? And when does Touro’s open?