Women and health care professionals' preferences for Down's Syndrome screening tests: a conjoint analysis study.
OBJECTIVE
To describe and compare women and health care professionals' preferences for Down's Syndrome screening tests with different test characteristics.


METHODS
Cross sectional questionnaire based conjoint analysis study.


METHODS
London teaching hospital.


METHODS
291/383 women in their first or second trimester of pregnancy and 98/122 health care professionals (41 obstetricians, senior house officers and above and 57 qualified midwives) providing care at the same hospital.


METHODS
Women completed a questionnaire while attending a clinic visit for a dating scan or a routine 20-week anomaly scan. Health care professionals completed a postal questionnaire.


METHODS
The relative values participants attach to Down's Syndrome screening test attributes: time of test, detection rate and risk of miscarriage of a baby unaffected by Down's Syndrome as a result of subsequent diagnostic tests.


RESULTS
Pregnant women and health care professionals shared broadly similar relative values regarding the importance of safe tests, conducted early and with high detection rates. When asked to choose between different Down's Syndrome screening tests, health care professionals valued earlier tests more highly than did women.


CONCLUSIONS
While pregnant women and health care professionals share similar relative values regarding optimal prenatal tests, health care professionals place a higher value on earlier tests. This may result in screening policies that overweight timing in the selection of a test to the relative neglect of tests associated with lower miscarriage rates and higher detection rates but conducted later in pregnancy.
Psychology and Genetics Research Group, King's College London, UK.
Amanda J
AJ
Bishop
Theresa M
TM
Marteau
David
D
Armstrong
Lyn S
LS
Chitty
Louise
L
Longworth
Martin J
MJ
Buxton
Cheryl
C
Berlin
D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001294:Attitude to Health; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008131:London; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000523:psychology*; D009721:Nurse Midwives / Q000523:psychology; D009774:Obstetrics; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011296:Prenatal Diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires