Marriage is a big step for both partners. While you must be busy discussing financial responsibilities and future plans, an important consideration—a health checkup—often gets overlooked. You might wonder what’s the need for premarital tests.
At a maternity center in Navi Mumbai, they are routinely performed to ensure both partners’ well-being. The tests mainly check for active infections and genetic diseases that could be passed on to the baby if you are planning a pregnancy. This post discusses the premarital tests you must take before your big day.
Blood Test and Rh Compatibility
Along with a Complete Blood Count (CBC), you need an Rh compatibility test. The blood test checks both partners’ blood groups. Different blood groups aren’t usually a cause for concern, but Rh incompatibility, specifically when a woman is Rh-negative and her partner is Rh-positive, requires medical attention during pregnancy.
Thalassemia Screening
Thalassemia, an inherited blood disorder, affects your body’s ability to produce adequate hemoglobin, which increases your risk of developing anemia.
It’s a part of premarital screening because if one or both partners are carriers of this gene, the child could be born with Thalassemia Major—a severe form of the disease where their bodies fail to make enough hemoglobin, requiring lifelong blood transfusions.
Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs)
Many sexually transmitted infections can be present in either partners’ body without any obvious signs. These can only be detected through screening.
Urine, blood, swab tests, and physical exams are commonly used for detecting different kinds of STIs, such as chlamydia, Gonorrhoea, Trichomoniasis, syphilis, and herpes simplex virus. Testing for STIs provides both partners with reassurance that they won’t contract lifelong or severe infections.
Genetic Carrier Screening
A genetic carrier screening test checks partners for gene mutations that may not produce obvious symptoms, but can be inherited by the child, putting them at an increased risk of genetic diseases.
The test is used to check for genetic diseases, such as Sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis, spinal muscular atrophy, and certain other inherited disorders.
Depending on your test results, a gynecologist in Navi Mumbai may refer you to a genetic counselor who can explain what your results mean for your future pregnancies and how they can affect your child’s health.
Fertility Testing
Not everyone getting married requires a fertility test. If there’s no reason for your gynecologist to run semen analysis, hormonal tests, pelvic examination, and other advanced fertility screening tests, they may simply not recommend them.
However, if the female partner experiences irregular or absent periods, has a history of pelvic surgery, endometriosis, or a history of sexually transmitted infections, and other reproductive organ diseases that might affect their fertility, a fertility screening can be a part of the premarital test package.
Thyroid Tests
TSH testing can help your doctor assess how well your thyroid is working. It may be recommended if you have thyroid disorders, autoimmune diseases, infertility, or menstrual irregularities. Thyroid disorders can affect your general health and might also interfere with your fertility and pregnancy.
