Psychological indications for prenatal diagnosis

Women undergoing prenatal diagnosis (PND) for psychological reasons constitute a considerable proportion (10-20 per cent) of tests carried out on pregnant women. In these cases, the couple is below the lower limit for parental age, and there is no increased genetic risk. The aim of the present study was to describe the psychosocial background of women asking for PND on psychological grounds and to evaluate their wish for PND. A consecutive series of 51 women were interviewed in the 12th-15th week of gestation before attending for the test. Forty-five per cent were close to the limit for advanced maternal age (35-37 years). Most of them were educated and had stable partners; more than half of the women worked in nursing. Almost half (23/51) of them had previous psychic problems and 29/51 showed depressive mood. During childhood, 21 women had experienced severe disease or handicap. One-third (17/51) of them had been a consolidating member in their family. More than half (33/51) described considerable problems in relation to their mother or to motherhood and 10/51 in their relation to their father. Half of the women described at least three and only three women none of the following six identified predisposing factors: previous or present psychic insufficiency, experience of disability in childhood, role as a significant supporter in childhood, problems in relation to own mother, problems in relation to own father. These women's anxiety was understandable when their psychological history and current mental status were recognized. More than half of the women (29/51) were considered to have strong and 22 moderately strong psychological reasons for their desire to have prenatal diagnosis.