Genetic Counseling

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Genetic Counseling

It really is incredible how many prenatal tests women can take to predict the health of their child. Couples can even foresee the possibility of passing on a genetic disorder to their child through genetic counseling. Genetic counseling can aid in reducing risks to newborn children and help families develop a plan if their child does have the risk of receiving a disease.

Genetic counseling consists of blood or tissue tests from both parents and then analyzing the genes found in these samples to see if the couple carries the risk of passing on a genetic disorder to their potential child. The tests can show the, "presence, absence, or malformation of genes or chromosomes." (Genetic Counseling,2009) The genetic counselor then analyzes and goes over the test with the couple to show the risk they have of passing on a disease to their child. The counselor then discusses the options the couple has and provides support for the couple if the outcome is negative.

(Medicine and the New Genetics, 2008) Even though genetic counseling can be beneficial to anyone who is considering having a child, there are certain people that could benefit from it more than others.

Genetic counseling can be helpful for couples before and even during pregnancy. A child could be diagnosed with a disease before he/she is born through genetic counseling. This could be greatly beneficial to the child because the couple can discuss birthing options such as natural or cesarean with the doctor to see which is less damaging to the child. (Genetic Counseling,2009) Couples who should really consider genetic counseling are those who may have had a negative result with other prenatal tests, have a family history of genetic diseases, the mother is over 35, and/or the couple is of...