First and Second Trimester Prenatal Screening for Trisomies 13, 18, and 21, and Open Neural Tube Defects

Alberta STE Report written under contract with the Alberta Health Technologies Decision Process (AHTDP).

This report provides an epidemiological profile of fetal aneuploidy and open neural tube defects (ONTD); describes the patterns of care, utilization trends, and factors affecting the provision of first and second trimester screening (FASTs) services for fetal aneuploidy and ONTD; performs an evaluation of the scientific evidence on the performance of available first and second trimester screening tests (FASTs) for Trisomy 21, 18, 13, and open neural tube defects (specifically spina bifida, anencephyaly, encephalocele, collectively refererred to as ONTDs); and provides an estimation of the costs and cost effectiveness of various screening strategies.

Section Authors:

• Section One – Social and System Demographics Analysis: Maria Ospina
• Section Two – Technology Effects and Effectiveness Analysis: Ken Bond, Carmen Moga, Christa Harstall
• Section Three – Economics Analysis: Anderson Chuck, Charles Yan, Thanh Nguyen
• Information Specialist: Dagmara Chojecki