There are various reasons why either a mother or presumed father of a particular child may seek a prenatal paternity test.

Usually, the desire is to confirm or disprove whether there is a genetic DNA relationship between the alleged father and the unborn child.

This may be motivated by potential issues involving child support, legal custody, financial aspects, relationship conflicts, suspicion of an illicit affair and arguably, just simple peace of mind.

How Prenatal Paternity Tests are Performed

Collecting DNA samples from either of the designated potential parents is painless and only involves collecting small amounts of cells from the inner cheeks using swabs.

Extracting samples of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from an unborn child is completely different and obviously invasive in nature.

Presently, there are two methods of initiating a prenatal paternity test. The first involves collecting cells from the placenta and is referred to as Chorionic Villi Sampling (CVS).

The second requires performing an amniocentesis which focuses on collecting loose fetal cells, but may also be used to screen for genetic anomalies that may affect the child in the near or later future.

Having amniocentesis performed can be used to determine if the child may genetically inherit any life threatening or debilitating diseases or challenges. There are many women that pursue this, simply because they desire to know if their child will be completely healthy prior to giving birth.

But this should not be considered as an opportunity to request a DNA test for paternity. If that is what is preferred, then be completely honest with your medical practitioners, otherwise they will likely suspect that something is not quite correct.

Prenatal Paternity Test Risks

In either case, these procedures can be performed as early into the pregnancy as 10 weeks, and as late as 24 weeks. As these are invasive procedures, there are always potential medical risks to the unborn child.

In all cases, such procedures must be performed by certified medical practitioners, and prior to considering them, a family Gynecologist and/or Obstetrician should be consulted.

There are some DNA testing companies that claim it is possible to avoid the risks involved with prenatal DNA extraction, simply by taking a sample of the mother’s blood.

Such tests have not yet proven to be scientifically accurate and are not endorsed by laboratories that are AABB certified.

These procedures should not be performed unless absolutely necessary because of the apparent risks to the child, perhaps even the mother and the obvious high costs of involving medical specialists.

A safer and less costly method would be to wait until the child’s birth and collect a blood sample from the umbilical cord.

This is simple and painless and will likely not impact the newborn child or the mother in virtually all instances.

Regardless of the prenatal or post-natal procedure used, the primary purpose is to extract an accurate DNA sample that will be processed by an accredited DNA testing facility.

The laboratory would then proceed to amplify the DNA and analyze these samples for the presence of at least 13 genetic markers.

Also, the lab would likely perform these tests twice in order to produce results that are extremely high in accuracy, with a probability of 99.999 percent.

Prenatal Paternity Testing Suggestions

To repeat, because it is incredibly important, if you absolutely deem it necessary to have a prenatal DNA paternity test performed, it is strongly recommended that you consult with expert medical practitioners that will be performing the procedure as well as a Gynecologist, Obstetrician and your family doctor.

You should also strive to anticipate the medical costs involved and determine if your medical insurance plan will cover any or all expenses. Receiving an unexpected medical bill for thousands of dollars is not what most people would prefer.

It may also be necessary to engage a paternity lawyer if there are possible legal issues.

Lastly, consider what is truly important before proceeding and this should be the health of the child. There may be strong emotions experienced by the mother, the assumed father and other family members regarding paternity, maternity, child support, custody issues and likely others.

These should always be secondary considerations to bringing a healthy child into the world regardless of who the true biological parents are.

Prenatal Testing Methods

A fascinating and important review and preview of paternity and genetic testing methods and techniques that exist now or under development.

This video discusses preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) and preimplantation genetic screening (PGS), whereby cells derived from the IVF process can be genetically analyzed before being implanted into a potential mother.

This obviously raises several issues related to whether to proceed beyond DNA screening for diseases and whether or not to modify a potential baby’s genetic code in order to have only a healthy child and terminate any that are less than perfect.

Is this the future? Too late, it’s already here and if the information is accurate, then creating a genetically perfect baby is likely already in process. Prefer a different hair or skin color, increased athletic or intellectual ability, or anything else possibly in your next child? Help is on the way, like it or not.

Full reference to this lecture is presented below.

UCL Lunch Hour Lecture: Genetic testing in the 21st century: Should we screen the human embryonic genome before implantation? Dr Joyce Harper (UCL Centre for preimplantation genetic diagnosis).

In preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), embryos are created by IVF and cells removed from these embryos for genetic analysis. Until recently, testing was solely for the disease the couple carried.

The use of array-comparative genomic hybridisation and single nucleotide polymorphism arrays has entered the PGD arena. These techniques allow all chromosomes and many genes to be examined.

The analysis of the whole genome prior to implantation brings ethical concerns. Will healthy couples opt for PGD to select their ‘best’ offspring?

Great news for mothers to be and potential fathers! It is now possible to determine DNA paternity during pregnancy and without using any invasive procedures that could harm the baby.

Previously, it was necessary to extract DNA from the fetus that could potentially involve risks and an obviously emotionally painful decision on the part of the mother to judge the value in doing so.

DDC (DNA Diagnostics Center), the largest provider of private DNA paternity and other DNA tests in the United States and around the world, announced today the company’s exclusive license for the first non-invasive prenatal paternity test.

It involves using SNP (single-nucleotide polymorphism) Microarray Technology, which requires only a simple blood draw from the mother and alleged father. This is a huge leap forward in rendering paternity determination prior to birth virtually painless and with no risk to the child.

Costs have not been indicated but are likely in the same range as a standard DNA paternity test using DNA samples collected from child, mother and potential father. Congratulations DDC!

To know who is the father of your baby, paternity tests are the most accurate method. Identify the father of your baby with tips from a gynecologist and obstetrician in this free video on pregnancy.

Expert: Dr. Jill Hechtman MD OB/GYN Contact: www.ob-gyn.com Bio: Dr. Jill Hechtman, MD is an Ob/Gyn and vice president of Tampa Obstetrics. Filmmaker: Christopher Rokosz

Andrew Faucett on unintended consequences of genetic testing, including discoveries of “non-paternity” or parents-to-be receiving “too much” information via prenatal testing.

Faucett spoke at the the 2009 Predictive Health Symposum held at Emory University Conference Center in Atlanta, Georgia. Related Links “Emory/Georgia Tech Predictive Health Symposium” Press Kit whsc.emory.edu “Predictive Health Symposium Links Biology, Behavior and the Environment” Press Release, 11/12/09 shared.web.emory.edu Emory/Georgia Tech Predictive Health Institute www.predictivehealth.emory.edu

My husband was working in a different state for a while and in that time he had an affair. It was a one time incident and they used a condom but she is now pregnant. When I calculated her conception date and vicinity online, in that time period she was in a completely different state than him.

Unless her doctors possibly derived the due date wrong, which I know sometimes can happen, is there anyway that my husband could obtain a court ordered prenatal paternity test or are we going to have to wait until this baby is born before we know if he is actually the father?

Thank you in advance for any helpful advice.

I have a friend whose girlfriend is pregnant. And I am just wondering what the normal fee for a prenatal paternity test is or if the hospital will do it for free? Thank you for your answers.

Would a doctor have to do it? And how much does it usually cost? Any information is appreciated!

Also, I read that they could do this test with the mother’s blood instead of inserting a long needle into her belly.

Is this true? If so, is it less expensive?

I’ve been reading a lot about it and for my situation it seems like a great option. I’d like to hear from people who have gotten this.

Did it hurt? How expensive was it? Did insurance cover any of it? Were the results accurate?

I know I won’t receive any money until the baby is born, but can I go ahead and fill out a application and go to court so that when the baby is born all I have to do is let them know?

Instead of dealing with all those things right after I have this baby (due in 3 months), I would like some advice.

As long as I get the prenatal paternity test done, and it shows that he is the father, I should be able to go ahead and begin with filing for child support.

Is this the right way?

I’m pregnant and I need to get a paternity test as soon as possible. Yes, I know I can wait until my baby’s born, but we kinda need one now (Confusing situation).

So what’s the soonest that a prenatal paternity test can be performed?

Thanks for any helpful advice.

The father of my child is now deciding to deny the baby is his so I want to get a paternity test.

I am three months pregnant and want to get the prenatal one but he won’t agree to taking it.

All suggestions welcome.