About Firstvue NIPT
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When can I do Firstvue NIPT?
Firstvue can be done by woman with minimum 10 weeks of pregnancy. Firstvue analyses fetal cell-free DNA in the maternal blood. The amount of cell-free fetal DNA increases as the pregnancy progresses, and reaches the sufficient amount for analysis in the 10 th weeks of pregnancy.
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Can I do Firstvue NIPT?
Firstvue can be done by woman in their pregnancy, with minimum 10 weeks of pregnancy. Firstvue can also be done for pregnancy conceived by In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) or for twin pregnancy. Consult your doctor or our consultant to know further if you can do Firstvue NIPT.
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How is the registration procedure for Firstvue NIPT?
Contact Firstvue hotline at 081281999388 to make an appointment for blood sample collection at your home. Payment can be done through bank transfer or through debit / credit card during your appointment.
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Can Firstvue NIPT detect all kinds of birth defects?
Firstvue NIPT can only developmental defects in the fetus that are caused by chromosomal abnormalities relating to trisomy and microdeletions. However, there are many other abnormalities that are caused by other factors such as maternal nutrition (e.g folic acid deficiency can cause spina bifida) or viral or parasitic infection (e.g infection of the central nervous system can cause hydrocephaly).
Other organ defects like heart defect can also be caused by genetic or chromosomal abnormalities like trisomy and microdeletion that can be detected by Firstvue NIPT. However, there are other type of genetic abnormalities like single point mutation in certain genes that can also cause heart defect, which cannot be detected at the current state of NIPT technology.
Test Result
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When can I get the result?
Your result will be ready in 14 working days.
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Is there any possibility that the result is delayed?
In certain rare conditons, if retest needs to be done, there will be a delay in reporting.
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What are the possible results?
Low risk: There is a low risk for chromosomal abnormalities in your fetus. High risk: There is high risk for chromosomal abnormalities in your fetus. Borderline: There is no conclusive result from the analysis. This might happen due to limitation of statistical analysis. As a part of our commitment to provide this service, we are offering free retest using a new blood sample.
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Is high risk result gives a certain indication that my fetus have a chromosome abnormality?
Firstvue NIPT is a screening test and not a diagnostic test. If your test result indicates high risk for certain chromosomal abnormalities, consult your pregnancy to your obstetrician. Your obstetrician might refer you for a diagnostic test like Amniocentesis. This diagnostic test cost will be reimbursed by Firstvue if your result indicates high risk and is referred by your obstetrician.
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Is there any possibility that redraw or retest is needed?
In rare situations, there is a need to do reanalysis or blood redraw if the first result indicates: Low Reads, Low Fetal Fraction, High Data Noise, or Borderline. All the cost of the re-analysis or blood redraw will be borne by Firstvue.
Low Reads
Low reads result is caused readings by the machine that is too low for sufficient analysis. Hence, there is a need to do re-sequencing that takes 2-3 working days.
Low Fetal Fraction
10-20% of cell-free DNA in the maternal blood plasma is fetal cell-free DNA. Firstvue NIPT requires ≥3.5% of fetal cell-free DNA for analysis. There are a few things that can cause low fraction of fetal cell- free DNA in the maternal blood sample such as maternal BMI (Body Mass Index) which is overweight or gestational age / pregnancy which is premature (<10 weeks).
High Data Noise
High Data noise indicates there is an issue with DNA sequencing. There are various factors that can affect the outcome of DNA sequencing. For instance, there is possibility of contamination of the cell-free DNA with the maternal genomic DNA that affect the readings. However, the possibility of this issue arising is minimized by our Firstvue kit that includes a high-quality tube that is designed for handling cell-free DNA. However, there are other factors that are yet to be known that can also cause high data noise. -
Who can I contact to consult my result?
You can consult your trusted obstetrician or our Genetic Counselor that can contact and discuss your result further.