Navigate Parenthood With Genetic Insights
Helix Genomix Reproductive Genetics Program acts as a compass for expectant parents navigating through the often complex world of prenatal care. By delving deep into an expecting couple’s personal medical and family history, our geneticists can assess their risk of having a baby with inheriting genetic disorders and chromosomal abnormalities and empower them to make informed choices.
The benefits of genetic counseling sessions extend beyond pregnancy or prenatal care. These counseling sessions also act as a valuable tool for diagnosing conditions in newborns or addressing concerns about their development. Our comprehensive counseling sessions offer personalized guidance and help couples understand complex genetic information in the language they understand as they embark on their parenthood journey.
How Can We Help You?
Our geneticists will look into your family’s medical history including your partner’s to look for known genetic conditions, birth defects or chromosomal abnormalities across several generations and will evaluate your potential risk of having a child with a genetic condition.
They shall also educate you about different prenatal screening options like the non invasive prenatal test (NIPT), a blood test that detects common chromosomal issues in the developing fetus and if there is a need for a more comprehensive analysis, they can talk about chromosomal microarray analysis (CMA), which can examine a baby’s entire genetic make up for abnormalities beyond those detected by NIPT.
In some cases, they might suggest carrier screening, a test often done using Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology to identify if parents carry genes for specific conditions. This knowledge combined with Preimplantation Genetic Testing(PGT) can significantly increase the chances of a healthy pregnancy. PGT analyzes embryos developed through in vitro fertilization (IVF) for genetic abnormalities, allowing parents to choose those with lowest risk.
Range
Of Services
Of Services
Genetic
Investigation Support
Preconception Counseling
(Before Pregnancy)
Reproductive
Risk Assessments
Prenatal Counseling
(During Pregnancy)
Genetic Counseling
Before IVF
Carrier Screening
Counseling
How Can You Prepare for a Reproductive Genetic Counseling Session?
Kindly gather all information related to your personal, your partners and your family members medical history. Please inform your geneticist if you have one or more members with a history of genetic conditions such as thalassemia, cystic fibrosis, spinal muscular atrophy, birth defects, and intellectual disabilities running in the family
You can schedule a session with our geneticists through our “Book a Session” option on the website. For any other queries, you can reach out to us at +91-82888-49988. We also request you to kindly share all your supporting medical records 48 hours before the session at helixgenomix@gmail.com to ensure an accurate and informative discussion.
We also advise you to include your reproductive partner in the reproductive genetic counseling session so that reviewing medical history from both sides of couple becomes easy and the discussion can reach to a fruitful conclusion. It is also advised to include pre-affected children or family members (if any) with a genetic condition in the counseling sessions.
Our Genetic Counseling Session Covers
A personalised genetic risk assessment by our expert geneticists based on personal and family risk factors. This consultation session may require 60 to 90 minutes.
An informative discussion on appropriate genetic testing options on the basis of risk factors and relevant family history is followed by the interpretation of genetic testing results.
Assistance in genetic testing of other family members who may have an increased risk.
Extended support from our expert team, from tests to follow-up consultations after receiving the genetic test results.
For more information about reproductive genetic counseling or to make an appointment
91-82888-49988
Frequently Asked Questions
Genetic counseling is an effective programme that helps couples or individuals understand genetic conditions and risks. Anyone planning a pregnancy or already experiencing it and concerned about their family’s genetic health can benefit from this advanced programme.
Preconception genetic counseling can be effective for individuals who have:
- Personal or family history of recurrent miscarriages, stillbirths, or abortions.
- Marriage within family or blood relations.
- Thalassemia carrier status detection on HPLC or HB electrophoresis test report
- Primary or secondary infertility issue due to premature ovarian failure in females and sperm abnormalities in males.
- History of pregnancy termination due to ultrasound abnormalities, intrauterine growth retardation, or intrauterine death.
- Family history of genetic disorders such as Down syndrome, cystic fibrosis, thalassemia, etc.
- History of a previous child with malformations, autism, mental retardation or intellectual disability, loss of achieved milestones, epilepsy, failure to gain weight or height, ambiguous genitalia, neonatal or infantile deaths.
Prenatal genetic counseling is suitable for individuals who are of advanced maternal or paternal age or are recommended by healthcare experts for preimplantation genetic testing. Prenatal genetic counseling is also required if couples have:
- Abnormal results of double, quadruple, or nipt (non-invasive prenatal testing)
- Single or multiple malformations on level 1 or level 2 ultrasound reports
- Thalassemia or cystic fibrosis carriers identified during antenatal screening in single or both parents
There are various preconception genetic testing options are available, such as
- Carrier screening (identifying potential genetic disorders in parents)
- Karyotyping (blood) (analyzing chromosomes for abnormalities)
- Y Chromosomal Deletion (checks for male fertility issues)
- Whole-exome sequencing (examines the protein-coding genes for mutations)
- Preimplantation Genetic Testing (PGT) screens embryos for genetic abnormalities before implantation)
All these tests aid in assessing risks and making informed decisions. All genetic investigations are optional
- Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing–NIPT (detects foetal genetic abnormalities through maternal blood)
- Chromosomal Microarray (analyses DNA for chromosomal disorders)
- QF PCR (assesses specific genetic mutations in the foetus)
- FISH–Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (identifies chromosomal abnormalities)
- Karyotyping (examines foetal chromosomes for anomalies)
- Aneuploidy testing (screens for abnormal chromosome numbers)
These preconception genetic tests provide crucial insights into the developing foetus, aiding in informed medical decisions.
The carrier screening process identifies if individuals carry any gene mutations that could be passed on to their children. This helps in understanding the potential risks of passing on genetic conditions and helps in making informed family planning choices.
It evaluates genetic factors that can impact pregnancy. Reproductive risk assessment provides insights into potential risks so that individuals or couples can make informed decisions and go for healthier family planning.
All genetic investigations are optional. A team of expert geneticists can guide you through different testing options that can help you make the best decisions for you and your family. The final decision about performing a genetic investigation depends on you.
Yes, it can help. Individuals often opt for genetic counseling prior to conception to understand issues relating to maternal age, family history, history of miscarriage, and various other reasons. Having genetic insights helps in informed family planning, and it is less stressful to do before a pregnancy.
Related Case Studies
A family who had lost 2 children was able to have a healthy child.
A female had a healthy pregnancy and childbirth twice. However at both times, children became sick after a few days of birth
How carrier screening of couple ruled out the risk of SMA in children
A couple approached for pre-pregnancy counseling as the husband’s real brother could not walk due to severe muscle weakness and died at
Thalassemia Was Prevented In Second Child Through IVF-PGT(Preimplantation Genetic Testing)
Couple had a previous child with Thalassemia who was on blood transfusions monthly. This couple was very scared of planning another pregnancy