Prenatal diagnosis by amniocentesis and chorionic villus biopsy

Prenatal diagnosis forms only a small part of day-to-day family practice, but the techniques are of critical importance to couples at risk of having a child affected by genetic disorder. Second trimester amniocentesis will probably be replaced by first trimester chorionic villus biopsy and recombinant DNA technology, but the ethical and moral problems related to prenatal diagnosis are not so easily solved. Family physicians need to examine their own attitudes toward the handicapped before they offer counselling to couples at risk of bearing handicapped children. The controversy over abortion is central to the issue of prenatal diagnosis, and may only be resolved by development of prenatal treatments for certain genetic disorders. Sometimes the only thing we can offer patients is to be with them, in whatever their decisions bring.