Is amniocentesis accurate for DNA testing?

Nowadays, many expectant mothers do not trust their husbands very much after they become pregnant, so they always choose to do paternity testing. With the development of medicine now, paternity testing is not only done by testing blood after the child is born, but DNA can be detected through amniocentesis. So the following will introduce to you whether DNA testing by amniocentesis is accurate?

Paternity testing is the process of identifying the relationship between parents and children through blood typing or DNA testing. Amniocentesis draws amniotic fluid under the guidance of ultrasound. The doctor then extracts fetal DNA cells from the pregnant woman's amniotic fluid and identifies the fetal DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) to confirm who the biological father of the fetus in the pregnant woman's belly is. Therefore, amniocentesis can be used for paternity testing with an accuracy rate of over 95%.

Amniotic fluid paternity testing process: 1. Collect samples from the suspected father. If the pregnant woman does not want the suspected father to know, she can extract any of the following samples for identification. ① The suspected father’s bloodstains (used band-aids) and cigarette butts; ② The suspected father’s hair (hair roots must be plucked out) and clipped nails; ③ Semen stains, chewing gum residue, and toothpicks left by the suspected father; ④ The suspected father’s worn underwear, used toothbrushes, wine glasses, etc. 2. The person to be identified must go to the identification center in person to verify his or her identity and have the amniotic fluid collected in a regular tertiary hospital. 3. Pregnant women who submit samples for testing can use anonymous paternity testing methods without providing their own names and personal information. You can also ask others to bring samples for identification. 4. Wait for the test result. The appraisal report will usually be issued within 5 working days, and 6 hours if expedited.

Precautions for amniotic fluid paternity testing: 1. Before collecting amniotic fluid, the pregnant woman must undergo necessary preoperative examinations and the puncture can only be performed after excluding contraindications to the puncture. Preoperative examinations include routine blood tests, coagulation function, and preoperative infection screening (hepatitis B, syphilis, and AIDS). If the pregnant woman is a hepatitis B patient with positive or negative hepatitis B, liver function tests and blood HBV DNA tests are also required. 2. Pregnant women with the following conditions should not have their amniotic fluid collected: (1) threatened abortion; (2) cold and fever, with a body temperature higher than 37.2°C before the operation; (3) abnormal coagulation function, with bleeding tendency (platelet count ≤ 70×109/L); (4) pregnant women with signs of intrauterine or pelvic infection; (5) preoperative physical examination shows active infection: syphilis, HIV positive; hepatitis B patients with abnormal liver function and HBV DNA positive. 3. The amniotic fluid used for paternity testing must be transparent and contain no red blood cells.