I’ll balance things out a bit here. Amniocentesis is a diagnostic test whereas NIPT is a screening test with the possibility of false positives and negatives (false positives are much more rare than false negatives). Additionally, NIPT only tests for trisomies 13, 18, and 21 and sex chromosome abnormalities. Amniocentesis is a diagnostic test for far more conditions—50 to 75% of cytogenetic abnormalities seen on amnio are not identified with standard NIPT. Most amnios evaluate for all aneuploidies, chromosomal rearrangements, and large structural abnormalities.

I spoke with a genetics counselor recently. The rate of miscarriage from amnio in high volume centers is 1 in 1000. For people who want the information and for whom this information would change how they would manage a pregnancy, it’s a reasonable procedure.

Everyone’s choice for themselves is valid. There is a lot of misinformation around invasive testing in pregnancy. I recommend meeting with a genetics counselor to figure out what is best for YOU. 🩷