Maternal Serum Screen

Maternal serum screen -- also called the AFP screen, triple screen, or quad screen -- measures several proteins in a pregnant woman’s blood to assess the pregnancy’s risk for three conditions. Two of these are chromosome abnormalities, Down syndrome and a more rare and severe condition called Trisomy 18.

It is generally performed at 15 to 20 weeks gestation.

This test also determines the pregnancy’s risk for open spina bifida. If this test happens to show an increased risk for a problem (called a “positive” screen), further testing (amniocentesis and ultrasound) is offered.

Most women will have normal results on these follow up tests.

Physicians

Physicians offering this service include:

• Boyd, Brita K.
• Brancazio, Leo R.
• Brown, Haywood L.
• Decker, Martha L.
• Ellestad, Sarah C.
• Fitzpatrick, C. Brennan
• Heine, R. Phillips
• James, Andra H.
• Kuller, Jeffrey A.
• Livingston, Elizabeth G.
• Murtha, Amy P.
• Rhee, Eleanor H. J.
• Swamy, Geeta K.

Locations

This service is available at:

• Duke Perinatal Consultants of Raleigh
  2406 Blue Ridge Road, Suite 200, Raleigh, NC 27607
• Duke Fetal Diagnostic Center -- Durham
  200 Trent Drive, 1J, Durham, NC 27710
• Duke Perinatal Consultants of Greensboro
  1126 N. Church St., Suite 203, Greensboro, NC 27401