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Inheritest
Carrier Screening

The Inheritest® Carrier Screen can help determine if you have an increased chance of having a child with a genetic condition. With continuing advancement in treatment options, early insight can help you better prepare for your family’s future.

What is Carrier Screening?

Carrier screening is a genetic test that can help you learn if you are a carrier of a genetic condition. Being a carrier typically does not have an impact on your health, but means there may be an increased chance of having a child with a genetic condition. Usually, both parents must be a carrier of the same condition for there to be an increased chance.

Anyone can be a carrier

You could be a carrier of a genetic condition regardless of your ethnicity, and even when there is no family history of the condition. For example, more than 80% of infants with cystic fibrosis are born to families with no prior family history.1

When is the best time to have carrier screening?

Carrier screening can be done at any time, but is most useful if it is done before pregnancy, or as early as possible during the pregnancy. Early knowledge can empower your family planning choices and ensure you have early access to available treatments.

References:
1. Wildhagen MF, ten Kate LP, Habbema JD. Screening for cystic fibrosis and its evaluation. Br Med Bull. 1998;54(4):857-875. doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.bmb.a011734.

About the Test

More than 500 conditions are covered by Inheritest®

Inheritest® Panels

With multiple ethnic-neutral panel options, Inheritest® Carrier Screening reflects the evolving needs of providers, patients, and the latest society recommendations.

Panel Gene Count Gene List
Inheritest 100 PLUS Pane 143 Inheritest 100 Plus Gene List
Inheritest 300 PLUS Pane 350 Inheritest 300 Plus Gene List
Inheritest 500 PLUS Pane 578 Inheritest 500 Plus Gene List

Clinically Relevant Gene Coverage

More than 500 conditions covered by Inheritest® were thoughtfully selected by our clinical and scientific team, taking into consideration:

  • Conditions that can affect quality of life, require medical management, or decrease life expectancy
  • Conditions that may be early onset and severe, degenerative and progressive, cause intellectual disability, vision loss/eye problems or deafness/hearing loss
  • Metabolic conditions that may benefit from early medical intervention

How to Order

Ask your healthcare provider to fill out the Inheritest requisition and fax it to 450.901.3084.

A kit can be shipped directly to your home:
- Request a kit online or,
- Your healthcare provider can check off the appropriate box on your requisition.

Follow the instructions in the kit to provide a saliva sample and ship the sample to Dynacare. Complete the payment form in the kit.

Results will be sent to your healthcare provider once available (approximately 14 to 21 days after the sample is received).

For Healthcare Providers

Cutting-Edge Science and Methodology:

Advanced sequencing technology and appropriate confirmations for greater accuracy.

  • Full-gene sequencing with greater than 99% detection rates for most genes, and deletion/duplication analysis (copy number (CNV) calling)
  • Enhanced SNP analysis to identify patients at risk to be silent (2+0) spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) carriers
  • Fragile X result with both CGG and AGG repeats reported if indicated

Refer for Genetic Counselling

Please indicate on the requisition if you would like Dynacare to arrange genetic counselling for your patient, including both pre- and post-test counselling.

Results

What if the test shows you are a carrier of a genetic condition?

The chance you’ll have an affected child varies.

  • Autosomal recessive inheritance With autosomal recessive inheritance, if both parents are carriers of the same genetic condition, each pregnancy will have a 25% chance of inheriting the condition. An example of an autosomal recessive condition is cystic fibrosis.
  • X-linked inheritance With X-linked conditions, such as fragile X syndrome, only the egg provider needs to be a carrier for there to be an increased chance of having a child with the condition. In this case, there would be a 50% chance of passing down the condition. Typically, these conditions affect males, although in some cases, females may show symptoms too.
    Your healthcare provider and our genetic counsellors can help you better understand your test results and help you prepare for the future.

If your test result is negative, could you still be a carrier?

A negative result reduces, but does not completely eliminate, the risk of being a carrier of the genetic conditions included in the carrier screening panel. Screening cannot test for all types of carriers or all conditions.

Request an Inheritest Kit

An Inheritest saliva kit can be sent directly to your home. Please have your healthcare provider complete the requisition, and please complete the payment form within the kit.