Genetic counseling for familial conditions during pregnancy: an analysis of patient characteristics

Reproductive genetic counseling for a familial genetic risk factor preferably takes place before conception. However, of the women with a family history of genetic conditions who attend our department of clinical genetics, about 10-20% attend for the first time during a pregnancy. The current study aims to explore patient-related factors that may affect this late timing of reproductive genetic counseling. Consecutive pregnant (n = 100) and non-pregnant (n = 84) women visiting the department of clinical genetics for a genetic risk factor which was not age related completed a questionnaire immediately prior to the consultation. The questionnaire asked for (a) background characteristics, i.e. socio-demographic, obstetric, and disease characteristics (b) cognitive factors, i.e. initiative of referral, knowledge of the risk factor involved, risk perception, worry, child wish, attitudes toward abortion, and preferred participation in decision making, and (c) reasons for the timing of the consultation and for seeking genetic counseling. Pregnant women appeared to be higher educated, considered their children more often as healthy and were less often affected themselves, as compared to non-pregnant women. They also estimated their chance of having an affected child as lower, and they worried less. Furthermore, the initiative for referral was taken less often by the pregnant woman herself and more often by a medical worker. There were no major differences between the two study groups in knowledge, perceived severity of the risk factor, child wish, attitudes toward abortion, desired participation in decision making, and reasons to seek genetic counseling. Women indicated no specific reasons for their timing of referral for reproductive genetic counseling, e.g. during vs before pregnancy. Our data suggest that this timing of referral is not influenced predominantly by the women's level of knowledge. Rather, women's estimation of genetic risks and their degree of worry, which may be in accordance with the actual risk figures, seem to play a role in seeking genetic counseling. Although further studies are required, a more active role of health care providers seems warranted if we want to prevent genetic counseling for familial genetic conditions during pregnancy as much as possible.