PRENATAL DIAGNOSIS

Prenatal diagnosis: Diagnosis before birth. Methods for prenatal diagnosis include ultrasound (of the uterus, placenta and developing fetus), chorionic villus sampling (CVS) to obtain tissue for chromosome or biochemical analysis, amniocentesis to obtain amniotic fluid for the analysis of chromosmes, enzymes, DNA, etc. A growing number of birth defects and diseases are now amenable to prenatal diagnosis. Also called antenatal diagnosis.