Preimplantation genetic screening is a medical test on fertilized embryos to check for genetic disorders before implantation, reducing risks for couples and avoiding selective abortion. It involves checking for aneuploidy, genetic conditions, and HLA compatibility. Bioethics concerns lead clinics to provide counseling for patients.
Preimplantation genetic screening is a medical test on a fertilized embryo to check for signs of genetic disorders before performing an implantation. This allows the doctor to avoid implanting embryos with serious genetic diseases. This practice has begun to develop as assisted reproductive technology and genetics have improved, making it accessible to many couples seeking help with their pregnancies.
The most basic goal of preimplantation genetic screening is to reduce the risks for the couple. If a genetic disorder is likely to cause a miscarriage, the doctor doesn’t want to implant the embryo, because it will expose the mother to the risks of pregnancy without the reward of a baby at the end. Serious genetic diseases incompatible with life are also a concern; a baby may only live for a few days or weeks after birth and the parents may not want to go through that.
Screening can also help parents avoid selective abortion, where they choose to have an abortion after receiving a fetal diagnosis indicative of significant future health problems. This usually occurs when a fetus shows signs of aneuploidy, an abnormal number of chromosomes. Depending on the chromosomes involved and whether the child has too many or too few, this can lead to serious genetic disorders. In other cases, the child may be born with a disability that the parents don’t feel equipped to handle.
In preimplantation genetic screening, doctors can check for aneuploidy, genetic conditions known to be a problem in a couple’s family history, and specific genetic abnormalities a person may carry. The goal may be to prevent implantation of an embryo that will have a genetic condition, or to avoid having a child who will be a carrier. Screening can also be used to check for human leukocyte antigen (HLA) compatibility, to see if the child can provide a cord blood stem cell donation for another sibling.
Preimplantation genetic screening involves some complicated bioethics issues. Bioethicists generally agree on the safety of using the tests to prevent high-risk pregnancies or situations in which a doctor implants an embryo that is unlikely to mature. They are divided on topics such as the use of genetic screening for gender selection or to eliminate disabilities that are not incompatible with life. Parents, for example, may choose not to implant an embryo with genes associated with deafness. Some disability rights advocates express concern that this technology could lead to the elimination of some disabilities and a reduction in human diversity.
Bioethics concerns lead most clinics to ask their patients for counseling before undertaking pre-implantation genetic screening, to ensure they understand the procedure and have thought about the consequences.
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