Obstetric Panel
Routine Blood Tests During Pregnancy –
A prenatal panel is a group of blood tests that are done early in the pregnancy. The tests are used to check for diseases and infections that can affect the health of a pregnant woman and her unborn baby. The results can guide treatments, which may help prevent serious complications. A
prenatal usually includes the following tests:
- (CBC) complete blood count
- (ABO) blood type and Rh factor
- (Rubella)
- (HBsAG) hepatitis B and hepatitis C
- (HIV) human immunodeficiency virus
- (STIs) other sexually transmitted infections
- (Varicella) IgG Antibody Titer
- (RPR) blood test that screens for syphilis in pregnant women
- (TB) tuberculosis
- (TSH) with reflex to free T4 (FT4) measures thyroid hormone levels during pregnancy.
- (GC/CT) urine test screens for chlamydia (CT) and gonorrhea (GC) during pregnancy
- (urinalysis)
- (urine culture
California Prenatal Screening Tests
During your pregnancy, your prenatal care provider should offer you two prenatal screenings as part of the California Prenatal Screening Program. Each screening requires you to give a blood sample. Each screening estimates the chances of your fetus having one of the genetic conditions or birth defects screened for in the Prenatal Screening Program.
Cell-free DNA (cfDNA)Screening
Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) screening of your blood sample uses genetic information from the placenta to check the fetus for the chances of it having the genetic conditions below. The placenta is the organ inside a pregnant individual that provides nutrients and oxygen to the fetus.
Trisomy 21 (Down syndrome)
Trisomy 18 (Edwards syndrome)
Trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome)
Starting April 1, 2024, the CA PNS Program will add sex chromosome aneuploidies (SCAs) – also referred to as X and Y chromosome variations – to the state cell-free DNA screening panel.
Turner syndrome
Klinefelter syndrome
Trisomy X
XYY
When to get it: cfDNA screening is recommended from 10 weeks to the first day of 21 weeks of pregnancy. The screening can be done after the first day of 21 weeks of pregnancy but the follow-up services are then more limited. Screening results are available in 10 to 14 days
Maternal serum alpha- fetoprotein (MSAFP) screening
Maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (MSAFP) screening of your blood sample looks at the protein made by the developing fetus. The amount of the protein may show whether the fetus has a birth defect called a neural tube defect. The most common types of these defects are:
Open spina bifida (opening in the spine)
Anencephaly (missing parts of brain or skull)
When to get it: MSAFP can be done from 15 weeks to the first day of 21 weeks of pregnancy. Screening results are available in 7 to 10 days.
