The risk of having a baby with Down''s syndrome is related to your age, although parents of any age can have a Down''s child. It is not related to how many children you have had, whether you have a new partner, or to drugs that you might have taken at or around the time of conception.

First, to help the doctor be absolutely precise when inserting the needle, an ultrasound scanner is used to establish the exact position of the fetus and the placenta. Second a fine needle is inserted into the womb and into a pool of amniotic fluid.