Maybe having an amnio tomorrow

As I think I shared earlier, we got scary results at our NT scan, but the doctor told us it was fine b/c he would attribute the bad blood results to the fact that I had bleeds with both babies. When we went back last Thursday, they did another u/s (everything looked good) and a quad screen. Well, I got a call this afternoon from the genetic counselor, and she "respectfully disagreed" with my dr. She said that the research in the last couple years has shown that bleeds will not cause the bad results I got, and we got pretty much the same results with the second blood test. (We're looking at about a 1:40 chance of Downs with each baby.) So, we're scheduled for an appt with her tomorrow. Then, they are going to try to get us in for an amnio immediately following our meeting. (She's going to try to convince the dr to squeeze us in, and she thinks that she will be successful.)

Please pray for us! I'm scared. I'm scared for the babies that we could lose one (or both) as a result of the procedure. I'm scared of the potential of having a baby with Downs Syndrome. And, I'm scared for the actual procedure - big, long needles scare the crap out of me.

 

I can't imagine how scared you are. I am sorry you are going through something so stressful during pregnancy. :hug:

Try to remember that a 1:40 chance of Down Syndrome is basically a 2.5% chance that they have Down Syndrome OR a 97.5% chance that they are perfectly healthy!! My good friend had a 1:50 chance of Down Syndrome and gave birth to a perfectly healthy baby boy in February. The odds are greatly in your favor!!

I think the rates of miscarrying after an amnio are much, much lower if an experienced OB or MFM/Peri is doing the amnio. Try not to worry too much about that - I know, easier said than done.

I had an amnio at 35 weeks to check my boys' lung maturity - and yes, the needle is big. But it really isn't that bad. My MFM put a topical anesthesia over the spot before the procedure. I squeezed my DH's hand pretty hard and it was over. Kind of like a bee sting or a hard pinch. Have someone there so you can hold their hand. Try to relax as much as possible. :hug:

 

Allison ~ sending you lots of :hug:s & best of luck at your appointment tomorrow.

I love what the PP mentioned about the percentage of your babies being healthy :wub: Try your best to focus on positive things (I know it is easier said than done) & I will keep you in my thoughts tomorrow!

Oh, and I am petrified of big needles too, when I had my amnio I just turned my head the other way & concentrated on my breathing - didn't watch ANY of it!!

 

Allison, I am sorry, I can't imagine how scary this is for you. :hug: I hope everything goes well tomorrow. Please update us when you can. :hug:

QUOTE(mama23boys @ Jun 10 2009, 09:01 PM) [snapback]1349446[/snapback]
OR a 97.5% chance that they are perfectly healthy!!


This is a good way to look at it.

 

:hug: I will definitely be keeping you and your babies in my thoughts!! I hope everything goes well!! :hug:

 

My prayers are with you, good luck! As pp said, the odds are still really in your favor that all will be ok. :hug:

 

Hopefully the results for the amnio come back normal so that you don't have to worry! For what it's worth, they told me at my NT scan that they don't even DO the blood work with twins because the test results are often inaccurate due to there being 2 babies.

As for the actual procedure, it's not too bad. I found it was like having a vaccine done by someone that wasn't too gentle about it (in a different place, obviously). It hurt a bit, but I've certainly felt MUCH worse in my life. I had some very mild cramping afterward.

Good luck tomorrow, I hope everything goes smoothly for you!

 

Lots of prayers to you and your babies.

 

Sending lots of positive thoughts and prayers for you and yours xoxoxoxoxoxo

 

Oh I cannot even imagine! HUGE :hug:s!!!! I will be thinking of you and your babies, please let us know how it goes!

 

Our dr told us that the bloodwork woul probably be abnormal just because there were two babies in there. I hope that is all it is with you! being pregnant is a scary time and when you are having twins it is double. I am sorry you are facing an amnio - My thoughts and prayers are with you and your sweet babies!

 

:hug: :hug: YOu and the babies are in my thoughts. :hug: :hug:

 

We got there at 10:15 (about 15 minutes late as a result of the yucky rain and fog ) The counselor saw us really quickly after I filled out a looooong questionnaire about my family history and DH's. She was really sweet to us, and just went over the actual results. She focused on the numbers, which I really appreciated. Our u/s measurements have all been perfect, however our blood work has never been quite right. On the 1st trimester screen, the PAPP-A was quite low and the HCG was a small amount high (JUUUUUST above the cutoff). On the second test (the quad screen), everything was normal except Inhibin, which was about double what they expected. She also told us that, with twins, it's impossible to attribute the levels correctly to each baby. All they know is total numbers, which they just divide evenly between the two. Since I have fraternal twins (or so we assume b/c we did IVF and put back 2 embies), she said (and the peri later confirmed) that it's more likely that one baby has a risk closer to 1:1000 and the other is the one causing the levels to be "off." That baby likely has a risk higher than 1:10 :shock: Based on this data, we decided to have the amnio. I really didn't sleep much last night, and we decided that we really needed to know what we are dealing with so that we don't worry ourselves sick over the next 5 months. That would be JUST as bad for the babies. Plus, we were looking at a risk of m/c from the procedure around 1:750 (clinic stats) and a likely DS risk around 1:10 for at least one of the babies (with no real way to know which one).

The procedure went really well. They didn't use a local for the sticks, which surprised me. When they did Baby B (the first one), it was just like you all described - a tiny prick and then a small crampy feeling that passed quickly. After they took the fluid, they then injected a blue non-toxic dye so that they would be certain that they didn't draw from the same baby twice. When they did Baby A (the second one) it was MUUUCH harder. He/she was really wiggling around and spreading out in the amniotic sac, so they had to go in slowly and go through the placenta. That one HURT, and I'm actually still sore. On a positive note, we didn't have blue fluid when they drew it, so it was only one stick. I'm not sure I would've allowed them to do another! I'm a little sore now and a tad crampy. I'm trying to take it easy to decrease the chances of a complication. We should have early results on Monday, so I'll let you know when I know.

Oh, on a side note, I had a silly scare after we got home. When I went to the bathroom, my pee was blue! I was terrified that meant my water was breaking with Baby B (the one who has blue dye in the fluid right now). Apparently, it just means that I am starting to "process" some of the dye that Baby B passed out to me through the placenta

 

Ugh! I'm sorry that it was harder to get the fluid from Baby A, and going through the placenta sounds really uncomfortable. At least the easier one was done first, otherwise it would make getting the second babies fluid that much more stressful!

That's interesting about the dye, I've never heard about using that.

Good luck on Monday - I hope the results come back totally normal for both of your babies!

 

Many prayers for you and your babes :hug:

 

Allison, I'm glad it went well with Baby B, but sorry it was a bit harder with Baby A. I am crossing my fingers for good results on Monday. That blue pee incident would have scared me too, glad it is nothing. Try not to worry until Monday. :hug: