Pre-Implantation Genetic Screening: Your Embryos for Chromosomal Abnormalities

Increasing number of infertilitycases is still one of the major health issues in India. Out of them, 60 percent of pregnancy losses are caused by genetic factors and add to that 2 to 3 percent of neonatal abnormalities, 50 percent of childhood disability and one to two percent of malignancies. Thankfully, today, new IVF and ART technologies are being devised so that patients can get the opportunity to give birth to healthy babies. Goral Gandhi, one of the eminent experts in the field, opines that amid the increasing cases of delayed and assisted pregnancy, genetic testing can be the shot in the arm.

"With the advancement in genetic technology, patients, especially those with genetic disorders of illnesses have been given the option to deliver genetically healthy children," she further stated. One of the genetic testing processes is the pre-implantation genetic screening (PGS) which includes detection of genetic defects in embryos at the pre-implantation stage. According to the embryologist, this method is an ideal option for couples who have had child with genetic defects in the past or who are at a higher risk of having children with genetic abnormalities. The latter can be determined by various factors including the mother's age (the older she is, higher is the possibility of genetic defects) and abnormal chromosome in any of the parents.

"With the help of PGS, embryos with a gene problem or abnormal number of chromosomes can be segregated from the normal ones, thus increasing the mother's chances of giving birth to a healthy baby,"explains Dr Goral Gandhi, who is also the founder of Indo Nippon IVF. She also added that while PGS helps in eliminating any gene defect in an embryo, for a successful implantation of the healthy embryo, the uterus of the mother should have a receptive endometrium.