Development of prenataldiagnosis technology and quality control in China

：Prenatal diagnosis isused for discovery of pregnant mothers' fetus abnormalities, ranging from maternal serumscreening, cytogenetic analysis for chromosome karyotypes, to molecular genetic diagnosis.It is therefore the primary approach to prevent and reduce birth defects. Based on theexperience obtained from developed countries, large-scale prenatal diagnosis has beencarried out in China, including maternal serum screening for Down syndrome, prenataldiagnosis of chromosomal diseases, and certain gene analysis for genetic diseases.However, it is noted that such development is uneven in different regions. As a greatdisease-prevention project involving steady development of the nation and the ethnicgroups, it is still necessary to establish or improve the prenatal diagnosis system andquality management regulations that are fit for the domestic conditions of China.