Blood Tests/ Swabs

Rhesus D test

If your blood group is rhesus negative, and your baby is Rhesus positive, you are offered injections during pregnancy of a substance called Anti-D. Anti-D stops the mothers body producing antibodies that can harm this pregnancy or a future pregnancy. The problem is, many hospitals don’t test baby’s blood group normally and so ALL pregnant women who are Rhesus negative are offered the Anti-D injections. If your baby is Rhesus negative the same as you, you actually don’t need these injections. So, wouldn’t it be amazing if there was a way to find out? Well, there is!

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I work in conjunction with an NHS lab in Bristol to offer you the RhD screening blood test. This looks at baby DNA in your blood from 11 weeks of pregnancy and tells you if baby is Rh Positive (so you may need Anti-D) or Rh negative (so you can avoid unnecessary injections). The test can be done any time after 11 weeks of pregnancy.

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You need to have had a scan to check there is only one baby and confirm gestation. If you would like to have this test, book a consultation and add the blood test to the booking. The results are back on around 10 days. We will call you with the results.

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Cost is €115, plus antenatal appointment

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Add this service to your antenatal appointment below

GBS swab

Testing for GBS can be performed by a enriched culture medium (ECM) vaginal and rectal swabs between 35-37 weeks gestation. If the ECM swabs are performed correctly within 5 weeks of birth then a negative result is 96% predictive that a woman will not be carrying GBS at birth, and if a positive result is found, this is 87% predictive that a woman would still be carrying GBS bacteria at the time of birth. ECM tests are the recommended method to test for GBS as it was specifically designed to detect GBS bacteria. These tests are usually only available privately, if families decide to seek out screen.

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I would highly recommend visiting the following websites for detailed information about Group B Strep:

-Understanding Group B Streptococcus - GBS - Private Midwives

-Information & Support - Group B Strep Support (gbss.org.uk)

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Cost is €115,plus antenatal appointment

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Add this service to your antenatal appointment below

GTT

You may be at higher risk of developing diabetes in pregnancy (gestational diabetes) if you:

• are overweight

• have had diabetes in pregnancy before

• have had a baby weighing 4.5kg (9.9lb) or more before

• have a close relative with diabetes

• have a south Asian, black or African Caribbean, or Middle Eastern family background.

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If you're considered to be at high risk for gestational diabetes, you may be offered a test called the OGTT (oral glucose tolerance test). This involves drinking a sugary drink and having a series of blood tests.

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The OGTT is done when you're between 24 and 28 weeks pregnant. If you've had gestational diabetes before, you'll be offered an OGTT earlier in pregnancy, soon after your booking visit, and another at 24 to 28 weeks if the first test is normal.

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The test measures how your body responds to and deals with the sugary drink. Typically, you have an initial blood test, then the drink, then a further blood test after an hour. I can offer you this blood test in my clinic during an antenatal check, to reduce the time spent waiting. 

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After the bloods are sent to the lab, results are normally back in about 5 working days.

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Cost is €240,plus antenatal appointment

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Add this service to your antenatal appointment below

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