Safer down syndrome test could replace Needle-Based procedure
NCT ID NCT02127515
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026
Summary
This study compared a simple blood test (noninvasive prenatal testing, or NIPT) with the standard invasive procedure (amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling) for detecting Down syndrome in over 2,100 pregnant women at high risk. The goal was to see if NIPT could reduce miscarriages while still accurately identifying cases. Women were randomly assigned to either the blood test or the invasive test, and researchers tracked miscarriage rates, accuracy, and costs.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- What this could lead to
- If successful, NIPT could become a safer, noninvasive option for prenatal Down syndrome screening, reducing the need for invasive tests and their associated miscarriage risk.
- What could go wrong
- This trial is completed but results are not yet widely implemented. NIPT may have false positives or negatives, and it is not a diagnostic test—only a screening tool.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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2,111 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Apr 2014
- Finished
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Nov 2016
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Female participants only
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * pregnant women over 18 * at risk for Down syndrome\> 1/250 based on combined screening using ultrasound together with maternal serum markers and prior to fetal karyotyping * singleton pregnancy * pregnancy between 11SA et 18SA * willing a fetal karyotype Exclusion Criteria: * risk for Down syndrome\< 1/250 or \>1/5 * NT\> 3 mm, PAPP-A or beta HCG \<0.3 MoM or \>5 MoM * multiple pregnancy , vanishing twin * morphological abnormalities at US * Kown chromosomal anomaly in parents * Patients not willing a fetal karyotype
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Hôpital Necker- Enfants Malades
Paris, 75015, France
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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