Prenatal genetic counseling

Current medical practice is using an increasing number of new and sophisticated techniques to deal with the fetus during pregnancy and not focusing exclusively on the immediate perinatal period. Some of these techniques deal with the occurrence or risk of serious genetic disease in the newborn. These procedures, which offer alternatives to the birth of seriously defective children, pose new problems in critical decision-making for contemporary parents. Proper medical care for the mother in such situations requires an understanding of the psychological as well as the medical and genetic aspects of each situation. It includes careful and caring communication of this information to the parents early in the gestational period, supportive care during the pregnancy and the procedures, and supportive counseling and follow-up afterwards. Properly applied, current genetic counseling diagnostic techniques as used by the physician can be extremely helpful to his patients in achieving the healthy family they desire.