Let me ask you a question. What do you think of PGD (pre-genetic diagnosis)? I know there are many good things about it, like finding out if your child will have some horrible disease. But you can also determine the gender of your future children before they are put in the womb. I was reading a blog earlier and this couple did IVF/PGD. They found that one embryo had Downs Syndrome and some other ones had other various issues. The 3 they put back in were healthy and there were 2 girls and a boy. Is it just me or does this make anyone else feel weird? I mean, we are already playing God by forcing our bodies to do things they clearly don't want to do. Then we take an embryo and pluck out a cell? What if that cell was meant for something important...like the top of the head? I know we all want our children to be healthy, but is it really fair to say who goes back in and who doesn't?
My neighbor is 20+ weeks pregnant and they had their big ultrasound today. They found some issue with the baby's intestines that is a marker for Downs Syndrome...echogenic bowel. Of course she is upset at the thought of her child going through life with a disability. But she turned down the amnio because it didn't matter. She will love this child if it's born "normal" or not.
I really just don't know how I feel about it. I would greatly appreciate your input. My RE gave me the option of doing IVF/PGD but even she doesn't recommend it/like it.
FF: Chili & Cornbread
6 years ago
2 comments:
This is our ONLY option. Since at least one of our losses was confirmed to be due to chromosome defect and the others are probable that that is the case as well.
If (when) we do pgd, we will specifically ask not to know the sex of the embryos that are put back in. But then again, I would not find out the sex during pregnancy as well.
We would not be doing it to have perfect blue eye girl babies (for example), we are doing it to have a baby that will hopefully not teminate itself (although that is not guaranteed either).
And while removing a cell does have some POSSIBLE consequences, I think those possibilities are so much less a risk than not doing PGD at all.
My risk (based on history) is that 30% of any non-pgd preg will end in m/c. That is not a risk I am willing to take.
So, if we do ivf, it will only be with pgd.
Preimplantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD as it is known for short, is used for the identification of genetic defects in embryos that are created using in vitro fertilization or other forms of assisted reproductive technologies. The procedure may also be used for gender selection purposes as well. The specialist performing the procedure will examine the genetic makeup of the embryos created to check for genetic defects as well as the couple's desired gender. Clinic for PGD in Thailand
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