Genetic testing may be more widely known to determine a person's blood relationship and lineage. However, genetic testing is a type of examination that helps in many ways, not just used to confirm a person's bloodline or relationship.

There are hundreds of genetic tests available in the world today and many more are in development. These tests involve identifying changes in genes, chromosomes, or proteins. These tests can use a variety of samples such as blood, saliva, or other tissue samples.

Benefits of Genetic Testing

Genetic testing has various useful benefits, especially for health, such as:

Know your ancestry and lineage

One of the most popular benefits of genetic testing is to find out family relationships and lineage. Through this test, a person can find relatives who may not have been known before, or find out if they are related to their children or parents. The test is done by comparing a person's genetic profile with other individuals who are thought to be close relatives.

Understand health risks

Some genetic tests can provide information regarding a person's genetic risk of a particular disease or health risk. This information is useful to help take preventive, monitoring, or treatment measures based on the test results and identified risks.

Prenatal diagnosis

Genetic testing can also be used to identify possible genetic disorders, congenital abnormalities, or birth defects in the fetus before birth. The purpose of this test is to provide information to parents about the health condition of the fetus while it is still in the womb so that they can make decisions about future care or planning. Prenatal diagnosis tests can be done by taking cell samples from the fetus or placenta.

Newborn screening

Genetic tests can also be used as screening for hereditary diseases in newborns, to find out if the baby has a congenital disorder that is genetically inherited by the parents. The purpose of this test is to detect early certain genetic or metabolic conditions that can cause serious health problems and require immediate intervention. Early treatment and intervention can greatly help and even prevent severe disabilities.

Preimplantation test

This test is generally used to screen the embryo (fetus in the third to eighth week of pregnancy). Screening is done to see if there is a genetic or chromosomal abnormality in the embryo in the process of IVF (in vitro fertilization). The benefit and purpose of this test is to increase the chance of a healthy baby and reduce the risk of genetic abnormalities that may be experienced.

Pharmacogenetic test

Pharmacogenetic testing is a type of genetic test that is usually used to find out how a person's genetic factors can affect the response to drugs. This test is very important for example in someone who has genetic resistance to viruses such as HIV.

Before deciding to undergo genetic testing, it is important to talk to your doctor so that you can understand the benefits, risks, and emotional impact that may be associated with the test results. If you need medical advice or consultation, you can either visit a doctor or make use of the consultation features that are available in the Ai Care application by downloading the Ai Care application from the App Store or Play Store.

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