Keeping it Simple - Caesarean section or vaginal birth?

Which is best for a baby with trisomy 18?

This is the Keeping it Simple summary - read the detailed version here.

This question comes up all the time on trisomy groups. It came up for us. Our initial plans were to have a caesarean section, but we eventually decided to opt for vaginal birth after a lot of discussion with different professionals and taking all our circumstances into account. What I would say is that there is no clear-cut answer as to which is the best option for a baby with trisomy 18.

Keeping it Simple - Survival in trisomy 18

This is the Keeping it Simple summary - read the detailed version here.

So here you are: your fetus or newborn has a diagnosis of trisomy 18 and you ask, "How long will she live?" Your doctor tells you that it's "rare to make it to birth, but if she does, a few days; some live a few weeks"; your googling tells you that 8% live until a year; and your new online friend from the Facebook trisomy group tells you, "Don't give up hope! My daughter's 14!" (or 18 or 25), and you have no idea what on earth to say when your friends ask, "How serious is it?"

Keeping it Simple - Amniocentesis: Yes or No?

This is the Keeping it Simple summary - read the detailed version here.

So here you are: maybe you have a 'high risk' result from a combined screening test for T18; maybe you've just had your 20-week scan and they've picked up a bunch of anomalies that they suggest mean T18; maybe you've got a positive result from a Harmony or similar non invasive fetal screening test for T18. Either way you are being offered amniocentesis to confirm the diagnosis and you're not sure whether to have it.