Seminars in Fetal & Neonatal Medicine
Volume 13, Issue 2 , Pages 69-75, April 2008

Non-invasive fetal sex determination: Impact on clinical practice

  • Kirstin M. Finning

      Affiliations

    • International Blood Group Reference Laboratory, Southmead Road, Bristol, UK
    • ,
  • Lyn S. Chitty

      Affiliations

    • Clinical Molecular Genetics Unit, Institute of Child Health, 30 Guildford Street, London WC1N 6EH, UK
    • Fetal Medicine Unit, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Department of Clinical and Molecular Genetics, Institute of Child Health, 30 Guildford Street, London WC1N 6EH, UK. Tel.: +44 207 905 2608; fax: +44 207 380 9984.

Summary 

Prenatal fetal sex determination is undertaken in women at high risk of serious genetic disorders affecting a specific sex. Traditionally, this is undertaken by invasive testing, usually chorionic villus sampling, which carries a risk of miscarriage of around 1%. The identification of cell-free fetal DNA in the maternal circulation has allowed the development of ‘non-invasive prenatal diagnostic tests’, which permit fetal sex determination without risk to the pregnancy.

Keywords: Fetal sex determination, Free fetal DNA, Non-invasive prenatal diagnosis

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PII: S1744-165X(07)00153-9

doi:10.1016/j.siny.2007.12.007

Seminars in Fetal & Neonatal Medicine
Volume 13, Issue 2 , Pages 69-75, April 2008

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