Boy or girl? A simple test raises ethical concerns

But the researchers evaluated use of the test only in medical settings in foreign countries, not direct-to-consumer procedures, which are currently the only way for pregnant women to get the test in the United States.

Given the validation of the test’s accuracy, specialists say it’s only a matter of time before doctors begin offering it here - and that could raise ethical concerns if couples terminate a pregnancy when the fetus is not the gender of their choice. In some countries, including India and China, the percentage of girl babies has dropped precipitously in recent years, probably because of gender selection in favor of boys.

“If couples can get the results earlier, that makes abortion less burdensome,’’ said Arthur Caplan, a bioethicist at the University of Pennsylvania. “A woman can take the test, and then take pills to terminate the pregnancy in the privacy of her home when it’s that early on. I would say gender selection is a bad reason to have an abortion, which is tough for a pro-choicer like me to admit.’’

The blood test works by detecting fragments of fetal DNA that float through the mother’s bloodstream. Scientists can identify gender by looking for markers of the Y chromosome and can assume the fetus is a girl if none are found.

While some American couples use ultrasound results as a reason to terminate a healthy pregnancy, the imaging test is not as accurate. Studies suggest it is accurate about 86 percent of the time from 11 to 14 weeks, and about 90 percent of the time beyond that.

More invasive techniques, such as amniocentesis - which involves drawing a sample of amniotic fluid via a needle - are nearly 100 percent reliable, but pose a small risk of miscarriage and can’t be performed early in pregnancy.