What is a triple or quadruple screen test?
The maternal serum triple screen, sometimes called the triple test or MSAFP+ test, measures the amounts of three substances in a pregnant woman’s blood: alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), and estriol (uE3). The levels of these substances help estimate the risk that a fetus may have certain defects. The test results are computed based on a woman’s age, her weight, her race, and how far along her pregnancy is, among other factors. The quadruple screen combines the triple screen and a test for the hormone inhibin A, which is produced by the fetus and the placenta. One large study of over 23,000 women has reported that the quadruple screen detects almost 86% of all Down syndrome cases. Based on this study, the quadruple test is more likely to pick up Down syndrome and may be less likely to be false-positive than the triple screen.1 The triple screen is only reliable when it is done between 15 and 20 weeks’ gestation. This is why your doctor might use a fetal ultra
