Amniotic fluid alpha-fetoprotein testing in native Japanese women

✍ Scribed by Takekazu Onda; Kazuo Fukushima; Tadao Tanaka; Rintaro Sawa; Zuisei Hayashi; Osamu Tsutsumi; Yasushi Takai; Koyo Yoshida; Yasushi Nakamura; Kazuhiko Hoshi; Yukihito Fukada; Takashi Okai; Masato Sakai; Michihiro Kitagawa; Yoshiaki Akiyama; Katsunori Shimomura; Faye Myrick; A. Christine Dowman; Robert E. Grier

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 119 KB
• Volume: 19
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0197-3851
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-0223(199908)19:8<761::aid-pd623>3.0.co;2-i

✦ Synopsis

Owing to differences in maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein, human chorionic gonadotrophin and oestriol levels between native Japanese and Caucasian women screened in this labortory, a study was conducted to measure amniotic fluid alpha-fetoprotein (AFAFP) levels in native Japanese pregnancies. When the native Japanese AFAFP levels were compared with a United States (non-Black) population, the Japanese medians did not decrease as rapidly over the 14 to 22 weeks of gestation period investigated. At 14 weeks, the difference was negligible, graduating to a difference of 20 per cent by 22 weeks' gestation. Native Japanese pregnancy AFAFP levels should be interpreted based upon population data from that group alone. From these findings, prenatal screening laboratories should be encouraged to collect preliminary data for comparison before screening is initiated for a defined ethnic group.