Loading...
Administering RhesusD (RhD) immunoglobulin at 28 weeks' gestation in rhesus (Rh)-negative mothers is standard care to prevent alloimmunization. However, in ≈35% of cases, this procedure is unnecessary, because the fetus also is Rh-negative and poses no risk for sensitization. Noninvasive prenatal testing (i.e., cell-free DNA testing) is used increasingly to screen for chromosomal abnormalities at as early as 9 weeks' gestation. These tests employ next-generation DNA sequencing techniques to detect fetal DNA at low concentrations in maternal blood, which allows identification of fetal Rh status. In two industry-sponsored trials, researchers assessed the clinical effectiveness of commercially available cell-free DNA tests in predicting newbor…