Is it possible to test genetics before you have kids to rule out certain conditions, specifically for parents that have children that don’t function in any capacity or almost no capacity besides violence, the ones that either parents give up their lives or they go into a care facility?

Question

If so how, is it only for ivf?

In: Biology

Answer 1

When the fetus is of a certain age it is safe to collect samples from it. What they are doing is sticking a needle into the woumb and collect some of the water. This will contain some discarded skin cells and such which is enough to run genetic tests on the child. It is debated how early this should be allowed. There is some risk to this and the earlier it is done the higher the risk. But at the same time the earlier we know of genetic diseases the earlier we can take steps to reduce pain and suffering for both mother and child. There is also a debate on how ethical it is to do genetic testing before deciding on an abortion.