Advances in prenatal diagnosis. Social-psychological and policy issues

Chorionic villus sampling (CVS), a new technique for prenatally diagnosing chromosomal and genetic disorders, may soon replace amniocentesis. This procedure, performed by inserting a catheter through the pregnant woman's cervix or through the abdomen and removing cells from the placenta, has the advantages of being available earlier in the pregnancy than amniocentesis (at 9 to 11 weeks gestational age) and of yielding results in a shorter time. Although the medical aspects of the procedure are being investigated, its psychosocial and policy implications have not been studied systematically. These issues include the subjective assessment of risk that prompts women to choose or to reject CVS, the implications of earlier diagnosis for feelings about abortion, the potential of negative findings (i.e., the absence of the designated disorder) for well-being during the remainder of the pregnancy, the ramifications of first trimester identification of fetal sex, equity of access to prenatal diagnosis, and the possible over-utilization of these procedures. Drawing on previous research regarding amniocentesis and more recent research concerning CVS, this article discusses the potential implications of CVS.