Close Alert Banner
Skip to Content

Hospital

ResearchFoundation

Text Resize

Regular Large X-Large

Colour Contrast

Default High

Accessible formats and communication supports are available, please contact accessibility@cheo.on.ca

View Our Accessibility Plan

CareersContact UsWebsite FeedbackMyChart
FR
Childrens Hospital of Eastern Ontario Logo
Contact Us
  • Visiting CHEO
    • Accessibility
    • Amenities
    • Cold and flu season
    • COVID-19
    • Emergency care
    • Family and caregiver supports
    • Family-Centred Rounds
    • Find your doctor
    • Health Records
    • Maps and locations
    • Parking
    • Pay your bill
    • Pharmacy (Kidcare)
    • Preparing for your stay or visit
    • Visiting hours and policies
    View our Physician directory page
    Find Your Doctor Directory
  • Clinics, Services & Programs
    • Directory
    • Emergency care
    • IR/Cath and Sim Labs
    • Make a referral
    • Mental health
    • School
    • Surgical care
    • Technology Enabling Child Health Innovations (TECHi)
    • Virtual care
  • Resources and Support
    • A-Z resources
    • Community supports
    • Families First newsletter
    • Family and caregiver supports
    • Indigeneity - Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, Social justice
    • Patient Experience
    • Reads2CHEO
    • Transition to adult care
  • Get Involved
    • Co-op program
    • Donate
    • Family Advisory Council
    • Feedback
    • Share your voice
    • Volunteer
    • YouthNet
  • About Us
    • 1Door4Care
    • About CHEO
    • Advocacy
    • Awards, Accreditations and Designations
    • Blog
    • Careers
    • Contact us
    • Disclaimer
    • Find your doctor
    • For community physicians
    • For learners, students and residents
    • For pharmacists
    • Indigeneity - Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, Social justice
    • Innovation
    • Kids Come First
    • Leadership
    • Newsroom
    • Partners
    • Privacy and confidentiality
    • Reporting and statistics
    • Research and innovation
    • Social media terms of use
    • Strategy Renewal
HomeClinics, Services & ProgramsDirectoryGenetics ClinicPrenatal testing

Prenatal testing

Three sisters smiling at the camera

Regular Large X-Large
 
  • Open new window to share this page via Facebook Facebook
  • Open new window to share this page via LinkedIn LinkedIn
  • Open new window to share this page via Twitter Twitter
  • Email this page Email
Clinics, Services & Programs
    • Directory
      Toggle Section Directory Menu
      • Aakuluk clinic
      • Access Team
      • Adolescent Health Clinic
      • Anesthesiology and pain medicine
      • Audiology Clinic
      • Autism Services
        Toggle Section Autism Services Menu
        • Autism Family Advisory Committee
        • Autism FAQ
        • Contact us
        • Foundational Family Services
          Toggle Section Foundational Family Services Menu
          • Caregiver support
          • Caregiver-mediated early years services
          • School readiness services
          • Sleep support services
          • Social skills groups
        • Impact stories
        • Urgent Response Services
      • Bone Health Clinic
      • BORN Ontario
      • Cardiology Clinic
      • Centre for Healthy Active Living
      • Child and Youth Protection
      • Child Life
      • Children's Treatment Centre
      • Chronic pain service
        Toggle Section Chronic pain service Menu
        • Be sweet to babies
      • Cleft Lip and Palate
      • Clinic for Augmentative Communication
      • Complex Care Program
        Toggle Section Complex Care Program Menu
        • Complex Care Family Advisory Council
      • Coordinated Service Planning
      • Cystic Fibrosis Clinic
      • Dental Clinic
      • Dermatology Clinic
      • Development and Rehabilitation
      • Diabetes Clinic
      • Diagnostic Assessment Services
        Toggle Section Diagnostic Assessment Services Menu
        • Next steps: Lanark, Leeds and Grenville
        • Next steps: Ottawa
        • Next steps: Prescott and Russell
        • Next steps: Renfrew counties
        • Next steps: Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry
      • Down Syndrome Clinic
      • Emergency care
      • Endocrinology Clinic
      • ENT and Otolaryngology
      • FASD Worker Program
      • First Words program
      • Gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition
        Toggle Section Gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition Menu
        • Inflammatory Bowel Disease Centre
      • Gender Diversity Clinic
      • Genetics Clinic
        Toggle Section Genetics Clinic Menu
        • Connective Tissue Clinic
        • Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
        • Genetic Counselling
        • Hereditary Cancer Clinic
        • Prenatal testing
      • Genetics Diagnostic Laboratory
        Toggle Section Genetics Diagnostic Laboratory Menu
        • Genetic tests available
        • Genetics Laboratory frequently asked questions
        • Requisitions and forms
        • Sample requirements and shipping
      • Global health
        Toggle Section Global health Menu
        • International Adoption Clinic
      • Gynecology Clinic
      • Hematology and Oncology Program
        Toggle Section Hematology and Oncology Program Menu
        • Oncology Patient and Family Advisory Council
      • Home and Community Care
        Toggle Section Home and Community Care Menu
        • Family-Managed Home Care (FMHC)
      • Infectious Diseases Clinic
      • Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions
      • Laboratory-EORLA
      • Medical Imaging
      • Metabolics Clinic
      • Navigator Program
        Toggle Section Navigator Program Menu
        • National Newcomer Navigation Network – N4
      • Neonatal Care
        Toggle Section Neonatal Care Menu
        • Connecting babies and their caregivers
        • Neonatal Follow-up Clinic
        • Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
        • NICU Family Guide
      • Nephrology Clinic
      • Neurodevelopmental Disorders Diagnostic Clinic
      • Neurology Clinic
        Toggle Section Neurology Clinic Menu
        • Transitioning to adult neurology care
      • Neuromuscular Clinic
      • Neurophysiology Lab
      • Neurosurgery Service
      • Newborn Screening
      • Nunavut Program
      • Occupational Therapy
      • Ophthalmology Clinic
      • Orthopedic, Sports injury and Scoliosis Clinic
      • Palliative Care
      • Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
      • Pediatric Medicine
      • Pharmacy
      • Physiotherapy services
      • Pulmonary Function Laboratory
      • Recreation Therapy
      • Rehabilitation
      • Respirology Clinic
      • Rett syndrome
      • Rheumatology Clinic
      • School-based Rehabilitation Services
      • Sexual Assault/Abuse Care Program
      • SIM program
        Toggle Section SIM program Menu
        • Schedule a SIM
        • SIM faculty
        • SIM safety solutions
        • Simulation outreach
      • Sleep Lab
      • Speech Therapy
      • Telemedicine and tele-mental health
      • Urology Clinic
    • Emergency care
      Toggle Section Emergency care Menu
      • Emergency Department virtual care
    • IR/Cath and Sim Labs
    • Make a referral
    • Mental health
      Toggle Section Mental health Menu
      • Mental health research
      • Mental health services at CHEO
      • Waiting for mental health services
      • Young Minds Partnership Report Card 2018-2019
    • School
      Toggle Section School Menu
      • Eligibility
      • Reopening CHEO School
      • School Authority Board
      • Student transportation
    • Surgical care
      Toggle Section Surgical care Menu
      • 1. Getting ready for surgery
      • 2. One day before surgery
      • 3. Day of your surgery
      • 4. After surgery
      • Day Surgery Survey
      • Information for youth
    • Technology Enabling Child Health Innovations (TECHi)
    • Virtual care

Contact us

Receive Email Updates...

Prenatal testing

Prenatal Screening (FTS/MSS)

Prenatal screening services in our region are offered by Mount Sinai Hospital (MSH) Toronto. Blood samples and requisitions with nuchal translucency measurements are sent to Toronto for analysis. The MSH requisition is required to order testing.

MSH Toronto offers First Trimester Screening (FTS). Earlier screening results allow a woman with a positive screen to access genetic counselling and/or non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) as a secondary screen or diagnostic testing sooner in her pregnancy. Integrated Prenatal Screening (IPS) is no longer available. Maternal Serum Screening (2nd trimester) continues to be available for patients presenting to care at later gestations.

If your patient receives a positive prenatal screening result and would like an appointment in the Prenatal Genetics Clinic at CHEO, you must refer her to the Genetics Clinic.

For more information on prenatal screening in Ontario, please see Prenatal Screening Ontario.

For more information on prenatal screening in Quebec, please see the Quebec prenatal screening program.

Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT)

For more information on NIPT, please visit our Genetics Education site, GEC-KO.

Prenatal testing guide for women

A detailed guide to understanding prenatal tests is available from our Genetics Education site, GEC-KO

Advanced maternal age (AMA)

Prenatal genetic counselling for advanced maternal age (AMA) has been discontinued

  • Please be aware that as of June 1, 2017, the Genetics Clinic no longer accepts referrals for advanced maternal age (AMA) as the sole indication for prenatal genetic counselling.
  • Any physician can arrange an OHIP or RAMQ-funded non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT) for the indication of AMA without a referral to Genetics (see information and link below).
  • For women having NIPT as a primary screen, no other serum screen (FTS/MSS) is indicated for trisomy risk assessment. These are redundant and pose unnecessary cost to the system.
  • A Guide to Understanding Prenatal Screening Tests, a new, comprehensive guide for patients and their providers on prenatal screening, is available to assist you (see information and link below).

Why the change?

  • NIPT has dramatically changed the landscape of prenatal screening.
  • NIPT uses cell-free fetal DNA in maternal blood to screen for fetal trisomies.
  • NIPT has much higher sensitivity and specificity than traditional screening methods (FTS/MSS).
  • NIPT has been available as an OHIP-funded test for AMA women (≥ 40 yrs at delivery) since March 2014.
  • NIPT has significantly decreased the number of amniocentesis procedures performed in our region.
  • Like most medical clinics, we have very long wait lists and competing demands. Now that prenatal screening is simpler for AMA patients and their providers, we must redirect resources to other services within our clinic.
  • Any physician can arrange NIPT for the indication of advanced maternal age without a referral to Genetics.
  • Test information and links to requisitions for Ontario patients can be found on the GEC-KO website.
  • Test information and links to requisitions for Quebec patients can be found on the Quebec prenatal screening program website.

Please continue to refer:

  • AMA women requesting invasive testing (CVS/amniocentesis) without prior screening. Women who have received a low risk NIPT result will not be eligible for referral to Genetics unless additional risk factors have been identified.
  • Women age 35 or older at delivery who are carrying twins. OHIP-funded NIPT can be arranged for this population, but only by an MFM specialist or Geneticist. RAMQ-funded NIPT is not validated for twin pregnancies and is not available for women carrying twins at this time.
  • Women with abnormal NIPT results. The SOGC recommends that no irreversible obstetric decisions be made in pregnancies with abnormal NIPT results without confirmatory invasive testing, as false positives do occur.
  • Women with unusual NIPT results. Examples include uninterpretable results, “no call” results, intermediate risk results and repeat test failures.

Helpful tips:

  • All women less than age 40 at delivery should continue to be offered traditional prenatal screening (FTS/MSS). However some women may choose to self-pay for NIPT.
  • For women 40 or older at delivery, in addition to NIPT you may still order a nuchal translucency measurement at around 12 weeks gestation without enrolling your patient in FTS.

New patient resource

A Guide to Understanding Prenatal Screening Tests is a new, comprehensive and updated guide on prenatal screening published in March 2017 for patients and their providers that can be referred to throughout the screening process. This guide was written by a multidisciplinary team and informed by input from new parents. Copies can be viewed online or printed from: Genetics Education > Public Resources > Prenatal and Preconception Genetics.

The Quebec prenatal screening program published the Guide informationnel destiné aux professionnels de la santé (french only) and a pamphlet for patients in 2020. The pamphlet present all the information on the Québec Prenatal Screening Program to help pregnant women and couples to make a informed decision to whether or not they want to participate.



CHEO

  • Visiting CHEO
  • Clinics, Services & Programs
  • Resources and Support
  • Get Involved
  • About Us

Contact Us

CHEO
401 Smyth Road
Ottawa ON K1H 8L1
Phone: 613-737-7600
Email Us

 

Connect with us

View our Facebook Page View our Twitter Page View our Instagram Page View our YouTube Page View our LinkedIn Page

Sign up for our newsletter

twitter:1248b279-93aa-4ec9-8398-fb5ed28a6413

Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario logo

Copyright 2021 CHEO.

By GHD Digital
  • Sitemap
  • Accessibility
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy and confidentiality
  • Website Feedback
  • Contact Us

Staff Portal

Close Old Browser Notification
Browser Compatibility Notification
It appears you are trying to access this site using an outdated browser. As a result, parts of the site may not function properly for you. We recommend updating your browser to its most recent version at your earliest convenience.