Amniocentesis: What Affects The Test
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What Affects the Test
Reasons you may not be able to have the test or why the results may not be helpful include:
- If there is blood from your fetus in the amniotic fluid. This can falsely increase the level of the substances alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) levels, which test for neural tube defects.
- If the amniotic fluid is exposed to light. This can falsely lower bilirubin levels.
- If there is blood or meconium in the fluid. This may cause an incorrect result for the test that checks to see whether your baby’s (fetus’s) lungs are mature.
| Last updated: | May 14, 2008 |
|---|---|
| Author: | Sandy Jocoy, RN |
| Reviewed By: | Sarah Marshall, MD - Family Medicine, Siobhan M. Dolan, MD, MPH - Reproductive Genetics |
| Editors: | Kathleen M. Ariss, MS, Tracy Landauer |
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