What If Prenatal Testing Finds an Abnormality?

First identify the kind of result

A screening result, ultrasound observation and diagnostic result do not carry the same certainty. The treating team should explain what is known, what remains uncertain and which further assessment is available before the parties discuss consequences.

Arrange one clinician-led explanation

Ask the obstetric clinician or genetic counsellor to explain the original report, the level of certainty, possible additional testing, procedural risks, timing and what may remain unpredictable. Use a qualified interpreter where needed. A coordinator should organise the conversation, not interpret the result.

Keep consent and roles clear

The surrogate gives consent for examinations and procedures involving her body. Intended parents may need counselling about the future child and decisions within their legal role. Advance agreement wording can record values and communication duties, but it cannot replace current clinical information or the patient’s informed consent.

Create a respectful decision process

Complex prenatal information can affect the surrogate and intended parents differently. A responsible process gives the patient direct clinical counselling, gives intended parents appropriate information and advice, and prevents a difficult timetable from becoming pressure on consent.

• Share the original report only through consented channels
• Name the clinician or genetic counsellor who will explain it
• Arrange interpretation and separate emotional support
• Record deadlines for any offered follow-up test
• Clarify which decisions belong to the patient and which concern future parenting
• Avoid blame, pressure and repeated group questioning

Plan support whatever the outcome

Further assessment may be reassuring, may confirm a condition or may leave uncertainty. The team may need specialist pregnancy care, neonatal planning, additional intended-parent counselling or case-specific legal advice. Support should not disappear because the result changes the preferred journey.

First understand what the result can and cannot tell you

Prenatal screening estimates the chance of certain conditions; it does not usually make a diagnosis. A higher-chance result may lead to genetic counselling, specialist ultrasound or discussion of diagnostic testing, each with its own timing and limitations. The treating team should explain the finding directly to the surrogate as the patient and, with her consent, to the intended parents in a way that distinguishes confirmed information from uncertainty.

The parties should not try to resolve a complex result through messages or a clause read in isolation. The surrogate gives consent to procedures involving her body, and intended parents need independent advice about the implications for their family and any decisions described in the agreement. Good coordination arranges the right specialists, interpreters and discussion time while preventing urgency from becoming pressure. No one should be asked for a final view before the clinical facts are clear enough to understand.

Prenatal testing and specialist review in Tbilisi

NIPT blood testing is available through clinics and genetic laboratories in Tbilisi, and obstetric providers can arrange detailed ultrasound and specialist review. Availability does not make every test appropriate, and NIPT remains screening rather than diagnosis. A concerning result should be reviewed with the original report, fetal fraction where reported, gestational age, donor or embryo facts and relevant ultrasound findings before anyone orders a larger panel or repeats the sample.

Ask the obstetrician whether the next step is a repeat screen, targeted ultrasound, genetic counselling or discussion of a diagnostic procedure, and whether that service is performed locally or by referral. For a second opinion, request the laboratory report and ultrasound images—not only a translated message. A coordinator can book specialists and a qualified interpreter, while the clinician explains accuracy, limits, procedural risk and timing directly to the surrogate and, with consent, to the intended parents.