Trends in invasive prenatal diagnostic testing at a single institution

As diagnostic methodologies evolve, we sought to determine whether invasive testing rates would decline, whether there would be a shift in indications for invasive testing, and whether the diagnostic yield would increase.

We conducted a retrospective, observational study from 2006 through 2015. We quantified the number of invasive procedures per year and examined what percentage of these procedures yielded abnormal results. We also examined the indications for testing and determined the trend of these indications during the study period.

The number of amniocenteses showed a steady decline (P < .05). The number of CVS procedures has increased and was recently equivalent to amniocentesis. The percentage of abnormal results steadily increased from 11.4% to 27.0% (P < .001). The abnormal aneuploidy screening indication remained constant over time. Advanced maternal age (AMA) as the sole indication substantially declined from 42.3% to 15.52% (P < .001). Testing for a known single gene disorder steadily increased from 3.0% to 9.20% (P = .018).

Our study showed a significant decline in the number of amniocenteses, a steady increase in the percentage of abnormal results from invasive testing, and a decline in AMA as the sole indication for invasive testing.