Prenatal Paternity Testing: An Overview

Establishing paternity can be an important matter for both legal and private matters. If you need to know the paternity of a child while you are still pregnant prenatal paternity testing can provide you with valuable information. There are many reasons you’d want to take such a test.

Establish Parentage For Financial Matters

Children and being a parent are tied to numerous financial concerns. These can include willfully providing support, possible inheritance, and visitation. There are situations where you may not know who the other parent of your child is. These can be due to a variety of personal and relationship reasons. There are also situations where you need concrete proof of parentage due to the other party denying it due to either not knowing the full truth of the situation or wanting to have scientific evidence before becoming a part of a child’s life and investing both emotions and financial support.

Establish Parentage Due To Family Concerns

Knowing who the other parent of a child is can also be important for matters of the family that have nothing to do with monetary issues. A parent who wants to be a part of a child’s life may need scientific proof they are the biological parent to avoid any future concerns with other potential parents or involved parties. Proof of parentage can help with issues such as shared child raising, visitation, and simple family planning. There are also health considerations to keep in mind. Some health conditions are found in family bloodlines and by establishing a biological relationship you can be aware of any potential health issues your child may have in the present and future due to parentage.

More Information About Prenatal Paternity Testing

Prenatal paternity testing works like a traditional paternity test in that it takes DNA from both parents and tests them for a match with the child. In addition, these tests are available from healthcare providers, testing labs, and third-party companies for at-home testing needs. Here are some other considerations you may have.

• The Danger of The Test: Prenatal paternity testing is typically non-invasive and therefore completely safe for both you and your unborn child.
• The Accuracy of The Test: These types of tests are highly accurate making them well worth the time and money to do if you have questions about paternity. Prenatal paternity testing can correctly identify a parent within a range of 99.9 percent accuracy.
• How Non-Invasive Tests Work: After the first seven weeks of pregnancy this test can be accurately performed. It requires a blood sample from the mother and a cheek swab from a potential father. With these samples, testing can be done to determine any genetic match. Note that it is possible to test many potential fathers at the same time if you have many viable candidates.
• The Value of At-Home Tests: Sometimes you’re not looking to make a legal case or go before a judge and simply want proof of parentage quickly and efficiently. An at-home test can provide you with the information you need to make the best choices for your family.

Final Thoughts

Family and children are complex things and establishing who is the biological father of a child can be an issue of utmost importance. A home prenatal paternity test can provide you with highly accurate information to answer this very important question.