Prenatal Paternity Testing: Your Guide

An advanced prenatal paternity test offers a non-invasive solution to establish paternity even before the baby's birth. During the mother's pregnancy, the baby's DNA profile is extracted from freely circulating fetal DNA present in the mother's blood sample. This profile is then compared to the DNA of the potential father, which is collected through a straightforward mouth swab. In cases where obtaining a mouth swab is not feasible, alternative samples like fingernail clippings, cigarette butts, ear swabs, and more can also be processed for the potential father's DNA. Subsequently, a comprehensive report is generated to determine whether the tested individual is biologically the father or not.

A prenatal paternity test uses cell-free DNA from the developing fetus that floats freely in the bloodstream of the pregnant mother. This DNA can be found as early as the 7th week of pregnancy. With exclusive technology that has been published in Genetics in Medicine, our partnered lab DDC develops a DNA profile of the fetus’s DNA and compares the profile to the DNA profile of the possible father

The CertaintyTM Prenatal Paternity Test is available starting at $1599. The cost of the test varies depending on the number of tested parties, the speed of turnaround required (we can process your samples in as little as 3 days), and the type of sample provided for the potential father(s). Please call our knowledgeable DNA specialists to learn more and get started.

“Non-invasive” means there is no need to intrude into the baby’s safe environment to test for paternity. Instead, we collect only a blood sample from the mom’s arm, and a cheek-swab sample from the father.

The non-invasive prenatal test can be performed as early as 7 weeks into the pregnancy. In some cases, there may not be enough free-floating fetal DNA in the mother’s bloodstream at the time of initial sample collection. In these cases, we’ll schedule a second sample collection at no additional cost.

Yes, the non-invasive prenatal paternity test is completely safe for both the mother and the pregnancy. In the past, paternity could only be determined through invasive methods such as amniocentesis or CVS (Chorionic Villus Sample), which run a slight risk of miscarriage.

No, a previous pregnancy will not affect the outcome of a non-invasive prenatal paternity test.

No; because of the way the data is analyzed, a prenatal paternity test cannot be performed reliably if fathers are closely related (brothers, or father/son).

This test is not available for women carrying twins because the current technology can't isolate DNA from both fetuses.

No, a prenatal paternity test does not have to be a witnessed test with court-admissible results. The DNA sample for the possible father is a cheek swab, whereas the mother is a small blood sample. Many of our customers swab a possible father themselves at home while the mother goes to a clinic or other approved facility to have her blood drawn. However, in order for results to be legally admissible and for names to be on the test report, the possible father’s DNA collection does have to be witnessed by an approved, independent third party.

Opting for gender identification is available at an extra cost of $100, as we understand that not all parents are eager to know this information. Feel free to inquire about the gender option during your complimentary and confidential consultation with one of our case specialists by calling: 302.527.1789.