Physicians say they have developed a more accurate prenatal test for certain genetic disorders, including Down syndrome. According to Genetics in Medicine, the procedure dramatically cut the number of patients who received false-positive results during screening. In some hospitals in the U.K., the tests have been used to check for Down, Edwards, and Patau syndromes, which are all caused by the presence of an extra chromosome. In those hospitals, the rate of false-positives fell 100-fold and the new test found 101 of 106 pregnancies affected by the disorders, according to the report.
