Women's knowledge, concerns and psychological reactions before undergoing an invasive procedure for prenatal karyotyping

Objectives To evaluate women's reasons for having an invasive procedure, th eir Knowledge, how information was obtained, their satisfaction with this i nformation, their concerns about complications and psychological reactions and distress evoked by the procedure. Methods Ninety-four pregnant women undergoing early amniocentesis or chorio nic villus sampling (CVS) at 10-13 weeks' gestation participated in a quest ionnaire study. The women could choose between early amniocentesis (n = 38) and CVS (n = 31), or to be randomized to either of them (n = 25). Results Apart from two items, no differences were found between the groups. Age was the main reason for testing, and anxiety was stated as a reason by 38.3%. The women Knew more about methods for fetal karyotyping, what the t ests can reveal and how they are performed, than about the risks and reliab ility of the tests. The main source of information had been doctors and mid wives at the antenatal care center. For a majority of women (64.9%) the dec ision to have the test was made together with their partner. The women's co ncerns were focused on worry about fetal injury miscarriage and waiting for the result. The test did not have a major psychological impact on the wome n in general, but a substantial minority reacted with anxiety and distress. Conclusions Knowledge of factors important to women and their concerns is e ssential for professionals working with genetic counselling and performance of invasive procedures.