NEW YORK, Nov. 2 (UPI) -- Pregnancy miscarriage rates after routine amniocentesis are much lower than rates previously published in the 1970s and 1980s, says a U.S. study.
Studies that are decades old have suggested that amniocentesis increases the rate of miscarriage by 0.5 percent or 1 in 200 pregnancies. However, researchers at Mount School of Medicine in New York in conjunction with other institutions reported in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology that pregnancy miscarriage rates after routine midtrimester amniocentesis are significantly lower than rates previously published years ago in the 1970s and 1980s.
This study reports that the amniocentesis procedure-related loss risk is approximately 1 in 1,600 pregnancies.
Study leader Dr. Keith E. Eddleman of Mount Sinai School of Medicine has found that this new study now refutes the typically quoted 0.5 percent pregnancy loss rate and suggests it may be even lower than 0.1 percent.
"Women should be counseled that this older loss rate is archaic and their decision about whether or not to have an amniocentesis should be based on contemporary information about miscarriage rates with newer screening techniques, rather than just relying on general age based risks," said Eddleman.
