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Steffie,
I know it basically SUCKS. We got the news only about a week and a half ago and to be honest it has been HARD. BUT, here is the thing. I decided not to ruin the rest of my pregnancy. I have done sooooo much research spoken to many many drs. and all agree that as an isolated finiding it means next to nothing. Regardless, no one can guarentee you a healthy baby without invasive diagnostic testing (CVS or amnio). So you need to have faith. I am slowly getting out from under the depression and trust that my baby is healthy. My first instinct after they told us about the EIF was that my baby was fine and then doubt crept in and I started questioning whether I was just scared or whether it was intuition. And the more I thought about it the more I knew it was not intuition. So what I guess I am trying to say is that it will be a long 4 months but I trust that my previous testing is right and that my doctors are correct and that she is perfect in every way!

wanalil1 - you are right and i just have to believe that my baby is fine. I am sure it will take a few days to come out from under this depression. They did say that all my other measurements looked great and this was isolated. Did you get any other bloodwork, NT scan that they compared results to? I have not because I didn't want the anxiety from those tests. Are they going to recheck the spot? I've heard that sometimes they go away. When are you due? I'm due April 26. I hope to see you on this board the next few months because I"m sure we will both have our good and bad days.

Hi Steffie,
We are only a week apart!!! I am due April 20th, so yes we will get through this together!! I did have both the NT scan and bloodwairk in week 12 and then the AFP in week 16. After the tech did my u/s in week 20, the peri that looked over my u/s pics said all my other testing came back with the lowest risk possible, 1 in greater than 10,000. So with the EIF they gave me 1 in greater than 5,000. I posted details like 3 posts ago, so feel free to read that. But I am glad that we did the testing.

wannalil1 - well I'm very glad that we are so close in due dates and that I will have someone to vent to when I have a "bad day" worrying about the focus. I did talk to my doctor again today and he still thinks I have nothing to worry about since it was isolated. He did tell me even if it resolves itself it doesn't make your risk factor get better since it was still detected in the first place. Hopefully my risk factor is low just based on age (i'm 29). So I guess I'll have piece of mind on April 26 or maybe before because I am measuring 4 days ahead right now.

Well, I had another appointment with the dr just to check on my cervix length etc. (I had a leep a few years ago) so it makes me paranoid. But thank goodness it is LONG and closed. So one less thing to worry about. My OB reinterated the fact that my risk is so so small and that he realizes I wont stop thinking about it all together but he truly feels that I need to compartmentalize it and file it away because he truly believes it will be fine. He kept saying that the b/w results point to a baby that is healthy! That was reasurring to hear!

On another happy note, a "friend" from another board was also diagnosed with an EIF at her 20 week. She was considered advanced maternal age and did NOT do any other testing based on the u/s and it being only ONE marker. Her peri did not suggest it. So she waited it out and had a healthy baby boy yesterday!!! Another hopeful story to hold onto.

Hey Steffie,
I'm not that much farther along than you are....I'm due March 14th! I'm also "younger" (28) so my chances are lower as well, however, I'm in the same boat about worrying....all the time! I found myself obsessed with reading all 28 pages on here about the foci and everyones results and also on the babycenter website as well. But, lately, I've found that I've moved past all of that. All of my doctors that I've seen (we see a rotation panel here, so you're never 100% sure who will be your delivery doctor....it's going to be one of 8 different doctors) have told me not to worry about this anymore....that it's truly silly! So I try to shut my brain off and tell myself that it's all good. Some days it's tough and I think the worst, but overall, I've been much better, more positive and in my heart, I know it's all going to be perfectly fine! But I know for darn sure that after I have baby and know that everything is fine, I will be coming on here and posting my "success story"! lol! This site has been a sanity saver for me!

wannalil1 - i'm glad things went well with your appt and that your OB reiterated the fact that everything is going to be okay. I'm sure my OB is going to have to keep doing that for me!

Great to hear another success story from your friend and also one who is considered advanced maternal age. I'll be looking foward to seeing both our success stories posted.

ohhmuffin - Yeah I have to do the same and shut my brain off to that subject. It is hard but I'm sure as time passes that will become slightly easier. This site has been great for me too and I can't wait to see your sucess story posted in March! Make sure you post it:)

Boothy - i think you should post what happens either way. I think you will be fine as well though. I can only imagine how anxious you must be and I'm sure I'm going to find myself in the same situation as the due date approaches near. Good luck hun!

Hi. I've been reading these posts for quite a while but never responded. I am 38 years old and almost 32 weeks along in my pregnancy. I've known for about 3 months about the spot and was quite concerned at first but have gotten less distracted by it as time has passed. That's not to say I don't worry but it isn't quite as constant. I did not have the amnio done so I am just waiting to see what happens. I did have bloodwork, however, and it came back at 1/160 which was adjusted to 1/80 once the spot was found. I worried so much at first because the number was really risky, espcially compared to the many of you who are in the thousands. However, I still have almost a 99% chance of having a healthy baby. I really try to look at it this way. I fell lucky to be having my baby girl either way but I do hope she can have every opportunity life has to offer so I hope for her to be 100% healthy.
I wanted to post a comment to Boothy to say I would appreciate you posting your story either way. I absolutely believe it will be a success story with all your prayers answered but I think it is important for everyones story to be told. I have often wondered if people are only posting the good outcomes. I wish the best for all of us moms and I thank you all for the posts which are a great help.

Steffie92s and 1moremom... Thanks for responding to my question. I have often wondered if people have only posted the good outcomes which is great for us because I know that all I want to read right now is that everyone is having healthy babies! I'm freaken out right now because I'm 36 weeks and at my last appt. my cervix is shortening. Labour is close at hand and I should be excitied which I am...but of course most of the time I'm thinking about DS. I had a 3d ultrasound done around 26 weeks and have beautiful pictures of my babies face which I look at all the time. This helps me feel better to some extent because no matter what, this is my child and I love him regardless. My family doctor did tell me that in all his long years of practice, not once has he had a patient that has had this marker ONLY and had a child with DS. So he is 99.9% sure that mine is fine. I do feel confident that he's ok but there's always that BUT! Well I keep checking this site on a regular basis and of course reading all your stories helps. For all you women who still have a ways to go...try hard not to let this ruin your pregnancy. I know its soooooooo hard not to let the fear and anxiety take over but now that I'm at the end I wish I had not let this take over the happiness a women should feel with a wonderful life growing inside them. I will be back to let all of you know that my baby is happy and healthy...:~) All the best to all of you..:~)

Carlas28...I was just reading back and noticed that you are probably due any time now. Hope your doing well and your baby is great!!! All the best..:~)

Boothy and 1moremom - you must be feeling more anxious now that the pregnancy is coming to its end. I actually had a talk with my doula today how I am afraid that they fear of something being "wrong" with my child will affect my ability to focus and complete a natural childbirth. I told her I fear that my anxiety will start to increase as I get closer to delivery and during the labor. I have been dealing with it much better during the week but obviously it is in the back of my mind. I feel that I am shying away from talking about my pregnancy in general a bit. If someone brings it the pregnancy I do talk about it but I don't bring up the conversation on my own. I can only hope this will also get better with time because about 4 months to go and I'm going to have to learn to cope somehow. Best of luck to you both and again I'll keep you and all the rest of the moms who are getting close to delivery in my thoughts and prayers.

Boothy,
I too think that it would be good to hear about your baby, whether baby has DS or not. I really do believe that all of us are going to have perfectly healthy babies though ;) I hope that everyone is trying to relax with Christmas quickly approaching! We are chillin' in the house with a snowfall warning in effect.....not going anywhere and am soooo happy that our due date isn't in the middle of winter! We've had 6 inches of snow in the past 6 hours! Eeeekkk!!! On top of the 2 feet already in the yard and another foot to come before tomorrow morning. It's definitely going to be a white Christmas!!! Keep your heads up ladies! Can't wait to hear some more wonderful stories!

Ditto to 1moremoms comment. I was so happy to find this message board and read people's stories instead of more scientific studies! I am 36 and will be 37 at delivery. My first trimester testing (NT, plus blood work) gave me 1:937 for Downs so I had put it out of my mind. Flash forward to Level II ultrasound when the dreaded spot was found on left ventricle. Odds if they had never done the 1st trimester screening would have been 1:100. I am going to see a genetic counselor to have my odds recalculated. At any rate, I'm not doing amnio so reading the boards here and elsewhere is how I'm going to prepare, hopefully relax and prepare for whatever comes our way. If there are any moms 35 and over who have been through this please share your story regardless of outcome. I wish good results for everyone on this board and thank you for posting. Although I wish no one had to worry about the EIFs, I find it comforting to know that so many other women are willing to share their stories!

Hi Steffie92s- I used to shy away from the baby talk as well b/c I didn't want people to ask too many questions. They'd always ask what we were hoping for, boy or girl (at the time I didn't know it was a girl and told people we didn't care what it was) and then they'd inevitably say the dreaded "it doesn't matter what you're having as long as it's healthy." I wanted to ask, well, what if it isn't healthy, isn't that ok too?? But I never did say it and I'm glad I didn't. It was just the stress making me emotional. I can honestly tell you that after months of dealing with it, I am much better now. I happily talk about my baby girl (I am also now so obviously pregnant there's no hiding the fact I'm having a baby). I was worried about my baby shower and wondered if I could enjoy it and now that I recently had it I can tell you it was a blast. Remember, the odds really are on your side. These numbers are scary but they're just numbers. And when you see the ultrasounds with your baby, you will realize that all is good. No matter what happens these beautiful babies are a gift. A real gift!
Merry Christmas to all of you. I will be wishing for peace of mind for us all and healthy babies.

Thank you all for this wonderful resource and your stories. We had our (almost) 20 wk ultrasound on the 22nd and two soft markers were found. One of which is the 'bright spot' on the heart AND two CPC's (choroid plexus cysts) in the brain. I saw one post a few pages back with someone else who had both of these markers and wondering if she has any more info? Or, if anyone does? I find lots of reassuring info on the isolated EFI OR CPC, but having a hard time finding info on both of them together. Our genetic conselor says that the odds are the same 1/300 as if we had one of both but I'm having a hard time getting past that answer. This is what she says - 'if two markers are found, we would increase the risk much more than the ~2 fold that we used in your case. The reason why we used 2-fold in your case is because some research indicates that choroid plexus cysts are associated with Down syndrome, but other research has not shown that babies with Down syndrome are more likely to have choroid plexus cysts. If we had found two markers that have compelling data that suggests they are associated with Down syndrome, then we would use a much higher risk estimate. Unfortunately, even with all the advances in ultrasound and research on these markers, this remains an area that is not clear-cut.'
We are having another ultraound in 5-6 weeks just because it would feel good to DO something since we are not doing amnio, but she also says that even if the markers are gone, our risk is the same. Has anyone else heard that? Thanks so much for reading! Jen