Outcome of pregnancies following amniocentesis for genetic counseling

Amniocentesis in the second trimester of pregnancy has become an essential tool for genetic counseling. The experience in 925 pregnancies with special emphasis on the outcome of the pregnancy is reviewed. Amniocentesis was performed when there was advanced maternal age, predisposition to chromosomal aberrations, sex-linked disorders, metabolic disorders or neural tube defects. In the case of 44 fetuses diagnosed as affected, pregnancy was terminated. The spontaneous abortion rate was 2.46% but only one abortion could be directly attributed to the procedure. 94.6% gave birth after the 36th week of pregnancy. Amniocentesis did not have any effect on the overall perinatal mortality rate or on the congenital malformation rate. In spite of the fact that the literature reports potential complications, the authors found amniocentesis to be safe, with only minimal danger.